18 apply for one health board seat

Only one seat on Panhandle Health District's Board of Health is officially open for reappointment, but a Kootenai County commissioner is thinking about making it two.

Commissioner Chris Fillios said Monday the board had received 18 applications to replace decade-long Board of Health member Jai Nelson. Nelson did not apply, Fillios said.

The deadline to apply with the board of commissioners for Nelson's seat was last Friday.

Commissioner Leslie Duncan suggested commissioners fill Nelson's seat and consider nominations to replace Dr. Richard McLandress as well. McLandress, who was first elected to the Board of Health in 1985 and serves as the board's physician representative, still has two years remaining on his term.

Acting as a test-run, Duncan proposed substituting McLandress with a new board member for the rest of those two years. At least three physicians have applied for Nelson's position, Fillios said, and could appropriately fill either of the two seats.

"I don't think we've ever gotten 17 applications for one advisory board," Duncan said. "If it's a good fit, then they stay on, and we reappoint them, or if not, we do this process over."

Duncan did not say why she would want to replace McLandress but offered to explain her reasoning in a private executive session.

Over the last year, Nelson and McLandress have been steadfast supporters of the Panhandle Health District mask mandate. As a result, the two have taken the brunt of public anger, including calls for the commissioners to remove them from the Panhandle Health District board last summer.

It was not explicitly mentioned that McLandress's votes in favor of the mask mandate caused Duncan to consider his replacement. Still, Fillios hinted at the idea by asking her a hypothetical question.

"If you have an employee that served for 30 years and made a decision that might have been controversial, would you fire that employee?" he asked her.

Duncan didn't answer the question because she said it was too broad, again recommending the commissioners discuss her idea during an executive session later in the week.

Commissioner Bill Brooks noted that he has disagreed with things McLandress has said or voted for but doesn't think it's enough to warrant his removal.

Before exploring the prospects of cutting McLandress's term short, Fillios asked Brooks — the board's liaison to the Panhandle Health District — to see if the doctor wants to continue in his role.

To narrow down prospects for Nelson's seat, the commissioners agreed to present six candidates they each favor during next Monday's meeting.