NewsAugust 25, 2021
Health board upsets crowd with mask and vaccine recommendations
There was a time when meetings of the Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center Board of Trustees consisted of routine business -- a budget review, monthly updates on services provided at the center and reports on building maintenance. But that changed last year shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began. ...
There was a time when meetings of the Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center Board of Trustees consisted of routine business -- a budget review, monthly updates on services provided at the center and reports on building maintenance.
But that changed last year shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began. Now almost every meeting features angry shouts, pointed fingers and emotional pleas from people who believe their rights are being violated by government agencies over masks and vaccination recommendations.
Tuesday afternoon's board meeting was no exception.
For the second straight month, the meeting was moved to Cape Girardeau's Shawnee Park Center to accommodate a large public turnout. Attendance at Tuesday's meeting was estimated between 80 and 100, with most of the attendees choosing not to wear masks despite the City of Cape Girardeau's requirement masks be worn inside city-owned buildings.
Tuesday's meeting was routine until board member and retired physician Phillip Taylor offered a motion.
"I move that the Cape Girardeau Public Health Center recognizes that both the Missouri Chapter (of the) American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommend the wearing of masks for students over the age of 2 years in public schools to prevent the transmission of the COVID-19 virus," Taylor began.
"I further move that the Cape Girardeau County Health Center recognizes that the CDC currently recommends the wearing of masks in indoor public spaces for all individuals regardless of their vaccination status to prevent transmission of the COVID virus," he continued.
Taylor's next sentence triggered a crowd outburst.
"I further move that the Cape Girardeau Public Health Center strongly recommends vaccination against the COVID-19 virus to all individuals age 12 and older."
Shouts of NO!
The words were barely out of Taylor's mouth before shouts of "No!" echoed through the room, prompting Rita LaVanchy, who has appeared at numerous meetings to protest masks and other health measures, to rise from her front-row seat.
"With due respect...," LaVanchy began but was stopped by board member Diane Howard.
"Sit down," Howard said as she pointed to LaVanchy's chair. "This is not a time for public comment. You must sit down and allow. ..."
"Will you be allowing public comment?" LaVanchy asked before Howard finished her sentence.
Howard again directed LaVanchy to be seated. "Please sit down and do not interrupt," Howard asked again.
LaVanchy, ignoring Howard's request, continued. "It is the government's responsibility to prove to the citizens that these mandates have merit," she said. "It is not our responsibility to prove to you that we don't have to (wear masks or be vaccinated). You have to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is effectiveness in what you are proposing."
The crowd broke into 15 seconds of applause, after which Taylor continued his motion.
"Since I was interrupted and not allowed to finish, I'm going to finish the rest of the motion so everyone can hear it," he said. "The last part is I further move that the Cape Girardeau Public Health Center strongly recommends vaccination against the COVID-19 virus to all individuals age 12 and older... ."
Again, Taylor's words were overpowered by a chorus of "NO!" from the audience.
"You might as well be quiet because I'm going to finish it," he told the crowd, but was once again shouted down.
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"If we cannot continue the meeting because of inappropriate outbursts, we will adjourn the meeting," said board vice chairwoman Georganne Syler, who was conducting the meeting in the absence of board chairman John Freeze.
"You're inappropriate!" someone from the back of the room shouted in response.
"You're not dictators!" another person shouted.
Syler, undeterred, asked for a second to Dr. Taylor's motion, which Howard provided.
Becking dissents
"Well, I personally don't agree, so I'm not going to support the motion," said board member Eric Becking. His remark drew a partial standing ovation and a 20-second round of applause.
Taylor's motion passed by a 3-1 vote.
"There are opinions on both sides," Becking said following the vote, telling the crowd the issue is "unchartered territory" and he does not believe he has enough information to make an informed decision about vaccine effectiveness.
"This is a huge deal," he said. "This is so controversial and you can't prove that it's safe and effective (but) I'm not trying to pick sides."
The meeting was adjourned shortly after the vote, but the discussion between several trustees and audience members continued.
"We don't want to fight with you," Damon Dillard told the board, but accused the trustees of overreaching their authority by approving Taylor's motion.
"Everybody has overreached," he said, "from the federal government and CDC. It doesn't matter."
Dillard seemed to speak for many in the crowd when he said the health board's mask and vaccination recommendation "is totally unacceptable," adding "not any part of it do we accept and we will not comply."
In response, Syler pointed out the motion only called for a "recommendation" and not a "requirement" similar to the one the board approved last year. The county's mask mandate was lifted earlier this year when vaccinations became available.
"The motion made and accepted today has no mandate involved with it (and) we're not asking you to comply," she said. "We're simply saying this board, three out of the four (members) here today, accept this as a statement. We're not asking you to comply. We're simply saying that the board that was elected -- and several other people ran (for election to the board) who would not have complied, but they were not elected -- but those of us who were elected to this board have said we believe there is truth and validity to it (in reference to the mask and vaccination recommendation."
Although the board's action was not a requirement, Dillard and others said the board's recommendation carries the weight of a mandate.
"Your suggestion has a great deal of influence in the community," he said. "People look at what's being recommended and they're accepting it as a mandate. We're seeing it in schools, we're seeing it in businesses and we're seeing it in friendships. There are people who have lost friendships over this."
Howard disagreed about the degree of influence people think the health board has.
"If you have an issue about what the City of Cape Girardeau requires, please speak to the City Council about it," she said. "If you have an issue about what the school district requires, they also have a duly-elected board. They're independent thinkers. They're going to regard or disregard what people tell them, so please, if you have an issue with Walmart, talk to Walmart. If you have an issue with Lowe's, talk to Lowe's. Our county health department has not had a mandate in effect for six months."
Howard, Syler and Taylor left the meeting room shortly afterward, but Becking stayed for almost an hour listening to audience members' concerns about vaccine and mask efficacy, the speed at which the Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer vaccine, possible vaccine side effects, COVID-19 case numbers, and whether health care providers should use certain medications to treat coronavirus.
Becking and other board members indicated there will be ongoing discussions about COVID-19 and the board's role in responding to it.
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