Board of Health

BOARD OF HEALTH BOROUGH OF TENAFLY, NEW JERSEY BOARD MEETING, January 13 2022 The meeting of the Board of Health was held on the above date. Mr. Howard Bader, 2021 Board of Health President, read the Board’s compliance with the Open Public Meeting Law and called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. The virtual meeting was held via Webex. The following members were present: Howard Bader Dr. Etta Frankel Dr. Michael Basista Berton Greenberg Dr. Theresa Bervetti Also present: Councilwoman Julie O’Connor Jim Fordoko, Health Officer Ruby Parra, Registered Environmental Health Specialist Gabrielle Beck, Youth Liaison Omar Stovall Board of Health Secretary OATH OF OFFICE Councilwoman Julie O’Connor, Howard Bader, and Dr. Etta Frankel read respective Oaths of Office into the record. ELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR 2022 Nominations for President: A motion was made and seconded to nominate Mr. Howard Bader as President of the Tenafly Board of Health. There being no further nominations, the nominations were closed. A voice vote carried the motion unanimously. Mr. Bader is the President of the 2022 Tenafly Board of Health. Nominations for Vice President: A motion was made and seconded to nominate Etta Frankel as Vice President of the Tenafly Board of Health. There being no further nominations, the nominations were closed. A voice vote carried unanimously. Dr. Frankel is the Vice President of the 2022 Tenafly Board of Health. Tenafly Board of Health January 13, 2022 Page 2 Appointment of Secretary to the Board: A motion was made and seconded to appoint Mr. Omar Stovall as the Secretary to the Board of Health. A voice vote carried unanimously. Mr. Omar Stovall is the Secretary to the 2022 Tenafly Board of Health. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of November 4, 2021. A voice vote carried the motion. All voted in favor; none were opposed. NEW BUSINESS Jim Fedorko, Health Officer of Mid-Bergen Regional Health Commission presented to the Board of Health two contracts one of which allotted the Health Inspector to work two days a week and the other contact for 3 days a week. Board of Health President Mr. Howard Bader inquired as to why the additional day was needed. Registered Environmental Health Specialist Ruby Parra explained the need for 3 days is preferred due to the increase in inspections. Mr. Howard Bader believed that the Board of Health should proceed with the third day due to the increase in inspections. After a brief discussion the Board of Health agreed to proceed with the Mid-Bergen Regional Health Commission contract for 3 days oppose to the 2 days. After a brief discussion regarding all the contracts, a motion was made and seconded to approve the one- year contracts for HARP (Hackensack Awareness Regional Program) and Cooper Pest Solutions. A voice vote carried the motion. All voted in favor: none were opposed. Violations on 15 South Browning. A discussion ensued regarding property maintenance violations located at 15 S. Browning Avenue. A letter was drafted to notify the resident that failure to remediate in a satisfactory manner would allow the Borough to abate the violations. After a discussion, the Board of Health members unanimously decided that to have Jim Fedorko sign the notice to remove to the owner of the address. REPORTS OF STAFF Ms. Parra, Registered Environmental Health Specialist, reviewed her report which covered November 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021. Many inspections were done at numerous food establishments. Eight (8) food establishments received satisfactory ratings. Four (4) food establishments received conditional ratings. Spot checks were done at three (3) food establishments. Two (2) schools received satisfactory ratings, with two (2) schools having a conditional rating. There were spot checks at two (2) Cosmetic and Tattoo Parlors. She also addressed several animal bites and complaints. Ms. Parra’s full report is on file in the Health Office. Tenafly Board of Health January 13, 2022 Page 3 Mr. James Fedorko, Health Officer, reviewed his December 2021 report. Board members had received this report via email. COVID-19 There was one recent COVID-19 related death in Tenafly: A 73-year old, full y vaccinated, and received a booster on 08/31/2021. Died on 1/10/2022 The last COVID-19 recorded death in Tenafly was on March 24, 2021. There were 276 confirmed COVID-19 positives cases in Tenafly from December 1st to the 31st. As of January 10, 2022, Tenafly has an 86% COVID-19 fully vaccinated rate, age 5 and older and 40% of the population received a booster/3rd dose vaccine. The most recent COVID-19 Variant Surveillance Report Week ending December 25th, indicates that 76.2% of infections in NJ are the Omicron variant while 22.0% are the Delta variant The CDC has the following information posted in their web page: “Data from South Africa and the United Kingdom demonstrate that vaccine effectiveness against infection for two doses of an MRNA vaccine is approximately 35. A COVID-19 vaccine booster dose restores vaccine effectiveness against infection to 75%.” Influenza Influenza activity level is high statewide and there have been no influenza – associated confirmed pediatric deaths reported this season. The next meeting of the Board of Health is Thursday, March 10, 2022 at 7:30 p.m. A motion was made to adjourn the meeting at 8:32 p.m. A voice vote carried the motion. All voted in favor of the motion; none were opposed. Respectfully submitted, Omar K. Stovall Board of Health Secretary