EPHRATA - Chairman Tony Massa reported to the Grant County Board of Health in September that the Health District received the Gold Award at a national conference of boards of health. Only one Gold Award is given.

Massa expressed how proud he was of the board to receive this award and that it was very deserving.

"The main reason our Board won this award was because of our innovation and leadership collaborating between our cities and county," he said.

Health Officer Dr. Alexander Brzezny said he feels fortunate at how engaged the Board members are in health issues. There have been several important ordinances and resolutions passed and other very important work that has been done by this Board in the last several years.

In other matters discussed at the board's September meeting, Environmental Health Specialist Todd Phillips said the Health District office received a report regarding an individual who was tested for arsenic in the urine with results of 69 micrograms per specimen. The normal range is 0-35.

The suspected the source could be wine. Samples of the wine and water were submitted. Testing resulted in the wine being 1,562 parts per billion and the water tested at 35 parts per billion. The standard for arsenic in drinking water is 10 parts per billion.

Staff tested their own independent samples. These results were 15.62 parts per billion for the wine and .333 parts per billion for the water. Staff contacted several agencies, including the Department of Health Drinking Water, Food & Drug Administration and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau is investigating the wine and the Health District will be following up with the individual involved.

On the community public health front, Brzezny reported the agency has been managing two TB cases this year. One case was closed at the beginning of the summer. The other is being treated by Direct Observed Therapy.

There were no Pertussis cases in September, but there were four cases in June and five in August, along with two suspect cases. Grant continues to be the highest county in the state for case rate of pertussis.

In the state of Washington the numbers of flu-like illness are below the national epidemic threshold, which is a characteristic of inter-seasonal low rate for influenza.

However there has been an increase in upper respiratory infections in the last two weeks with school starting back up.