At its Dec. 6 meeting, the Hays County Commissioners Court adopted a proclamation declaring Dec. 5-9 National Influenza Vaccination Week and discussed the potential action to appoint Commissioner Debbie Gonzales Ingalsbe to the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) Transportation Policy Board.
Epidemiologist Julie Barksdale urges the community to get vaccinated to stop the spread of the disease as flu season is off to a roaring start.
“The vaccine is matched to the circulating viruses, it’ll provide a measure of protection,” Barksdale said. “There is not a magic bullet when it comes to public health, there is no one thing that is 100% effective. Do seatbelts prevent all injury in crashes? No, but we don’t throw them out. Vaccines are the same way.”
Commissioner Ingalsbe appreciates the work of Barksdale and that of health care workers within Hays County.
“I appreciate Julie and the rest of the employees coming in. They do this every year and being aware of this issue and many other health issues,” Ingalsbe said. “It’s a good time to recognize our employees for the hard work they do throughout the community.”
Judge Ruben Becerra went on to make some closing remarks regarding the proclamation and what it means to the community at large.
“There is no silver bullets. As the director of emergency management, I’ve lived that lesson over front and center,” Becerra said. “All public health, public safety issues and concerns are really — I believe from the highest level on down to local —are led by people that care, people with loved ones in mind.”
During the meeting, a discussion of appointing Commissioner Ingalsbe to CAMPO was initiated. Commissioner Mark Jones currently represents Hays County on the board. CAMPO is a regional planning organization and Judge Becerra weighed in on the importance of having a Hays County representative.
“I feel that it would be a good fit to put in a county-wide lens specifically because it is a regional planning organization and regionalism is critical,” Becerra said. “It’s not just one precinct or one side but the whole bigger regional picture.”
Regional collaboration is varied as there are both judges and commissioners representing their respective counties on the CAMPO board.
Commissioner Jones believes Commissioner Ingalsbe is fit for the position.
“[Ingalsbe has] a lot of respect throughout the region, from the staff to the policy board member, they’re really excited to be able to work with [her] moving forward,” Jones said.
The Hays County Commissioners Court meets at 9 a.m. on select Tuesdays each month. For more information, visit its website.