City of Columbia, Missouri  
Meeting Minutes - Final  
Board of Health  
Department of Public  
Health and Human  
Services  
Thursday, March 14, 2024  
5:30 PM  
Regular  
Training Room 1  
1005 W. Worley St.  
Columbia, MO 65203  
I. CALL TO ORDER  
7 -  
Present:  
Harry Feirman, Michael Szewczyk, Kathleen McKinney, Jonathan Heidt, Rosann  
Geiser, Sonita Simelus and Ella Miller  
4 - Elizabeth Hussey, Mahree Skala, R. Wade Schuette and Jacqueline Fernald  
Excused:  
a. Dr. Szewczyk called the meeting to order at 5:38 pm.  
City Staff Present: Stephanie Browning, Rebecca Roesslet, and Peyton  
Oliver  
Ella Miller was delayed due to an automobile accident and joined the  
meeting at 5:53 PM  
II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA  
a. Feirman moved to approve the minutes, seconded by McKinney. The  
motion passed unanimously.  
III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES  
a. McKinney moved to approve the minutes, seconded by Simelus. The  
motion passed unanimously.  
Attachments: BOH Draft Meeting Minutes 1-11-24  
IV. OLD BUSINESS  
V. NEW BUSINESS  
a. None  
a. Emergency Preparedness and Public Health - Rebecca Estes  
Chris Kelley and Rebecca Estes introduced themselves to the Board of  
Health. Kelley told the board that he had worked with the City of Columbia  
for 23 years in public safety. He currently works as the Director of the  
Boone County Office of Emergency Management. He briefly explained his  
staff at the Office of Emergency Management and what federal agencies  
help fund his operation. The Office of Emergency Management coordinates  
with municipalities and other entities to ensure the safety of persons and  
property during an emergency event. Kelley named a few events that the  
office of emergency management attends and prepares for, such as  
Mizzou football  
games or large-scale protests. Kelley recommended the Board of Health  
take a tour of the Office of Emergency Management. The Board was  
receptive to his recommendation.  
Planner Rebecca Estes explained her job to the Board of Health. Every  
county in Missouri must have at least one person who is the Emergency  
Preparedness Director. Boone County has multiple people in the city and  
county that plan for emergencies, Estes included. The Emergency  
Preparedness Director convenes all emergency preparedness partners to  
plan for any emergencies.  
Estes states that Boone County experiences a lot of flooding due to the  
Missouri river swelling. Some areas flood fairly regularly and the county  
prepares people in the area for that. Kelley stated that urban flooding has  
increased in Boone County and all over the country due to global warming.  
Tornadoes have also become a concern in the area in recent years,  
especially after a tornado struck Jefferson City a few years ago. After any  
flood or emergency, partners must provide preliminary estimates for the  
cost of damages to both the state of Missouri and to the federal  
government. Estes stated that ice storms are the busiest time for  
emergency preparedness due to power going out, food going bad, and  
accidents caused by ice. Emergency preparedness also monitors  
chemical spills in the area caused by runoff from industrial sites.  
Kelley said that Boone County has 103 outdoor emergency sirens in  
Boone County. They plan on adding ten more sirens in areas they deem to  
have a sufficiently large population.  
Columbia and Boone County receive funding from the Public Health  
Emergency Preparedness Grant (PHEP) which began in 1999 as a  
competitive bioterrorism grant due to a spike in anthrax attacks. It was  
reprogrammed after 9/11 to offer public health emergency preparedness  
funding for all state and local communities. PHEP is mostly a pass-through  
grant from the CDC to the State of Missouri to PHHS. Certain  
requirements have to be met by Missouri to receive the funds. For a  
municipality or state to receive PHEP funding, 15 capabilities must be  
reached. Estes said that multiple city agencies and departments are  
coordinated to make sure that each department can do its roles in  
emergency management. The role fulfilled by the health department is to  
provide surveillance on potential hazardous materials that might be  
biological, chemical, or radiological. This would include helping to  
coordinate food and water safety. PHHS also provides mass prophylaxis to  
first responders and the public. PHHS works with other departments and  
agencies to coordinate messaging so that the public would receive  
information all at once. An incident command chart was shown to the  
board to help them visualize how the command structure would work in  
case of an emergency. An operations chart was also shown to the Board  
where it explained the role of each division in responding to an emergency.  
She explained some roles done by the health department during the  
COVID-19 pandemic. This includes tracking volunteer hours and providing  
vaccinations.  
b. Discussion of future Board of Health agenda items  
Ella Miller, DDS was introduced and the board introduced themselves.  
c. Discussion of future Board of Health agenda items  
Director Browning suggested several topics for discussion at future board  
meetings. Browning has been in contact with Mark Johnson at the  
University of Missouri who heads the SewerShed Surveillance Project.  
Johnson has expressed interest in meeting with the Board of Health.  
Browning also expressed interest in touring the emergency preparedness  
facility. Szewczyk said he would be interested in refugees and immigrants  
arriving in Boone County and how they interact with local public health  
services including what resources are available. Members of the board  
said they would be interested in going to the water treatment facility.  
Browning said the state of Missouri is working on a foundational public  
health system model that would be required for all Missouri health  
departments. The goal is to make sure that every person is getting what  
they deserve from their health department. It would also provide more  
resources for smaller health departments.  
VI. REPORTS  
a. Director's Report - Stephanie Browning  
Browning said PHHS is currently working on budgeting and planning for the  
next six to eight months. The commission on the opioid settlement funds  
plans to meet with several board members to discuss best practices for  
spending the opioid settlement funds. PHHS held an opioid town hall  
meeting to discuss overdoses in Boone County. Naloxone was also  
distributed at the town hall meeting. Browning said that legislation is being  
worked through the general assembly that would void any laws or codes at  
the local or municipal level regarding tobacco or tobacco products. This  
would include local laws requiring that a person be 21 years old to  
purchase tobacco products. Szewczyk noted that throughout the country  
local Tobacco 21 legislation has been effective at limiting access by  
minors to tobacco products.  
VII. GENERAL COMMENTS BY PUBLIC, MEMBERS AND STAFF  
a. None  
VIII. NEXT MEETING DATE  
a. May 9, 2024  
IX. ADJOURNMENT  
a. Geiser moved to adjourn the meeting, seconded by McKinney. The  
motion passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 7:02 PM.  
Members of the public may attend any open meeting. For requests for accommodations related to  
disability, please call 573-874-CITY (573-874-2489) or email CITY@CoMo.gov. In order to assist staff in  
making the appropriate arrangements for your accommodation, please make your request as far in  
advance of the posted meeting date as possible.  
USB DRIVES PROHIBITED: Due to cybersecurity concerns, flash drives and other media devices  
are no longer permitted for delivering files or presentation materials. A speaker who desires to  
display a presentation must upload the presentation, in advance, to the city network using an  
upload portal. To upload your files and learn more, visit CoMo.gov/upload. (Effective Jan. 1,  
2023)