Commissioners weigh in on masks, COVID plight

During a recent public meeting, a local registered nurse who had just wrapped up a night shift sarcastically thanked the Flathead County commissioners for not wearing masks, despite signs on their chamber doors requiring others do just that.

“Why don’t the rules apply to everyone?” she asked. “I don’t understand why it’s so difficult. I do understand it’s a political statement.”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the commissioners — who are all currently quarantined through Nov. 26 due to COVID exposure — have rarely worn facial coverings when in their chambers for public meetings, a decision that goes against Gov. Steve Bullock’s directive requiring masks be worn indoors.

In separate interviews with the Daily Inter Lake, the commissioners talked about their views regarding the mask mandate, and whether they bear the onus of setting an example for their community by following that mandate.

They discussed their past and present views on Flathead County’s battle with COVID-19, addressing public statements, votes they’ve cast and whether they believe not wearing masks sets a dangerous precedent for the rest of the community. On some questions they gave similar answers, on others they did not.

For example, on the topic of why they choose to not wear masks in their chambers, Phil Mitchell, Pam Holmquist and Randy Brodehl all referred to a portion of the directive that states exceptions to the mask rule include “persons giving a speech or engaging in an artistic, cultural, musical, or theatrical performance for an audience, provided the audience is separated at least six feet of distance.”

To that end, the Republican commissioners said they have adjusted their own seating to adhere to the 6-foot rule and have spaced out other chairs and benches that are used by the public. In addition, they said they are often addressing the public, which could qualify as giving a speech.

“We arranged how we do business,” Brodehl said. “The directive allows you, when you’re speaking or addressing a crowd, to not use a mask. I feel we are within the governor’s directive.”

The commissioners also said they practice social distancing outside of the chambers and will abide by the mask directive when businesses urge them to do so. And Mitchell, whose term expires at the end of the year, said he actually takes issue with people who don’t wear masks in crowded areas.

“If you are choosing to be in a social setting, either at a business or at an event or at a grocery store and you are not wearing a mask, that bothers me,” said Mitchell, who also has two sons who are both doctors.

When asked if any of them are concerned about the precedent they are setting for the community by not wearing a mask when posted signs require the public to do so, all three said they are concerned about it to an extent, but pivoted back to how they believe they are in compliance with the directive even without wearing masks. They also questioned whether their wearing of masks would actually influence others to do so, maintaining that even though they are elected officials, the public is so divided on the issue that their actions wouldn’t sway anyone one way or another.

“If I wore a mask all the time, I don’t think it would change one iota whether people wear a mask. I don’t think it will change others, I think they have made up their minds,” said Mitchell, who added he hadn’t given much thought to the idea of setting a precedent for mask wearing prior to being asked about it on Wednesday.

Holmquist echoed Mitchell, saying “people think because we’re elected officials people are going to listen to us? Come on. People have been in this [pandemic] for eight or nine months now. They are either going to wear it or not wear it and we won’t change their minds.”

Brodehl said at this point, it would be difficult for anyone to change the minds of those who “really value small government.”

AMONG OTHER similarities, the commissioners all said to some degree masks should be an individual choice — a take that contradicts public-health recommendations.

The three collectively released an open letter in early October that focused on constitutional rights and the rights of businesses, among other topics. It was sent out shortly after Bullock openly critiqued Flathead County officials on their handling of the pandemic.

“The commissioners do not have legal grounds to mandate masks or other health mandates. Instead, we support the Constitutional rights of Montanas to make choices about personal protection for themselves and for their families,” the letter stated. “We also support the right of businesses to protect their employees and patrons and recommend that they follow the guidelines provided by the Public Health Officer.”

When asked if they think those two statements contradict one another, considering the public health officer has repeatedly asked local residents to wear masks, their answers differed.

For example, Mitchell acknowledged the statements “somewhat” refute one another and said, in hindsight, he wishes he would have requested more forcefully that people wear masks. He described himself as being one of the more “lenient” of the three on the topic of asking that the public wear masks more often.

Brodehl said he stands by the contents of the letter and again drove home the message on constitutional rights — the same one he has consistently delivered since the start of the pandemic when making decisions on COVID-19-related issues.

“When I became commissioner I took one oath: to uphold the constitution. I didn’t take an oath to the health department or the governor, and I want to be careful that I maintain that,” Brodehl said. “I refuse to tell people they should or shouldn’t wear a mask, but I will tell people it’s a great idea to care about your neighbors and your friends and family.”

As for Holmquist, she also strongly backed the letter, but then talked about how she wished a separate, more recent letter she had worked on with the Board of Health’s two practicing physicians had come to fruition. She said the primary goal of the letter was to ask the public to “consider wearing masks and to think more about the safety of your neighbors.”

The board decided not to move forward with releasing the statement after some of the language in the final draft was tweaked. For example, health department case data was added in and the phrase “those with minimal or no symptoms are still capable of spreading the virus” was changed to “those with minimal or no symptoms can spread the virus.”

“When we have a message and it gets changed last minute without input, I think that’s inappropriate,” said Homquist, who also serves on the Health Board. “Just because it’s not exactly what they wanted, it didn’t go out.”

When the letter was presented, the interim public health officer and board chair said there was no point in releasing a “watered down” statement void of hard facts. But Homlquist maintains if the letter had focused more on the idea of protecting one’s neighbor than on data — some of which she took issue with — it would be better digested by the community.

It took the committee nearly three weeks to settle on the draft. Chairman Bill Burg had signed on behalf of all health board members except Annie Bukacek, who dissented.

MEMBERS OF the Health Board and officials with the health department also have butted heads with the commissioners on items including financial and personnel relief for swamped managers and staff.

More recently, the commissioners rejected a request for overtime pay for seven exempt managers that receive salaries instead of hourly pay. At the time, Deputy Health Officer Kerry Nuckles said various health department employees have had to pull 80-hour work weeks to manage COVID-19-related tasks and that the overtime pay would help with burnout.

But Human Resources Director Tammy Skramovsky said in an email to commissioners that the 80 hours was either a “gross exaggeration or the timesheets are inaccurate.” She said if the timecards are correct, the highest number of working hours in a week was 68 hours.

The commissioners referred to Skramovsky’s email when validating their denial of overtime pay, even though the email was sent after they voted on the matter. All three said health department leaders should instead focus on better time management and hiring more staff — something Brodehl said he attempted to help with by deploying the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) for 14-day shifts at the department. But Nuckles said via email on Thursday that when a team member followed up with DNRC, they “did not receive encouraging information about whether they had available staff and when they could start.”

Nuckles also addressed Skramovsky’s email, saying that while she personally has not worked a 68-hour week, “there are staff who have worked more hours in a week than I have.” She added that although there is currently a satisfactory number of temporary staff, the department has struggled to effectively manage the number of temporary staff hired without managerial positions.

“Adding more temp workers doesn’t address the organizational challenges of bringing on so many new staff and switching to a seven day a week schedule with extended morning and evening hours,” Nuckles wrote.

The denial of overtime pay comes about four months after the commissioners turned down a separate request for compensatory time to be extended because health department employees were struggling to use it before it expired. Compensatory time needs to be taken within eight bi-weekly pay periods of it being earned.

However, the commissioners said they might consider extending comp time if a request came before them again and after conferring with other county leaders, including Skramovsky.

Mitchell and Holmquist noted they have denied similar financial requests from other county departments in the past and therefore, it might not be fair to approve them for the health department, regardless of current extenuating circumstances. But when asked if they might consider using this instance as a model for re-evaluating their stance on comp time and overtime pay for all county employees, both said “I don’t know.”

The back-to-back denials have created conflict between the commissioners and several health officials — a separation that can be felt via tense rhetoric during public meetings.

And while the commissioners all said they hope that division is mended sooner rather than later, no concrete paths as to how they might help restore that relationship were identified.

Finally, when asked if they would consider wearing masks as a means to possibly boost the morale of public health employees and show their support for their work, Holmquist and Brodehl expressed uncertainty while Mitchell said “I think yes, it would probably help them.”

He then added, “but I’m also not elected only for these people.”

Reporter Kianna Gardner can be reached at 758-4407 or kgardner@dailyinterlake.com