Central District Health board welcomes Dr. Ryan Cole, extends term of its trustee
Central District Health board members on Tuesday welcomed Dr. Ryan Cole, a Garden City pathologist who has questioned the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, advocated against masks and falsely suggested a Boise surgeon’s death was tied to the vaccine.
Cole became the only physician on the district health board when he narrowly secured the votes he needed from the four counties to weigh his appointment. The position became vacant when Ada County’s Republican commissioners chose not to reappoint Dr. Ted Epperly, who served on the board for 15 years and advocated for public health measures during the pandemic.
Cole on Tuesday said he was “humbled and honored” to be on the board.
“As much controversy as the media likes to kick up, I’m grateful and I’m always here to serve the community,” Cole told board members. “I care about the health of our community and I will be an active member of the board.”
The Idaho Medical Association said in a statement last week that Cole’s appointment process “favored politics over public health” and said that Cole has made dangerous claims “that do not align with the Idaho standards of care.” Cole didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
Cole has said he’s not vaccinated against COVID-19 and has also pushed the use of ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug, as an effective treatment against COVID-19. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved ivermectin for that use and said it could be dangerous. The American Medical Association and professional pharmacy groups have opposed prescribing or dispensing the drug for use in COVID-19 patients.
Meanwhile, the FDA has given full authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The other two COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S., Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, have been approved for emergency use.
Central District Health board member Hasbrouck becomes trustee
Members of the board on Tuesday also approved new bylaws to make a term-limit change, which allowed Valley County Commissioner Elt Hasbrouck to serve another stint as the CDH trustee on the Idaho Association of District Boards of Health Executive Council.
Epperly was elected to be that trustee during the May board meeting, but a vacancy was created when he was booted from the board. Hasbrouck had served three consecutive two-year terms in that role, which was the previous limit, but board members voted to increase that to four straight terms.
Hasbrouck pointed out that a new bill passed by the Idaho Legislature this year shifted more responsibility away from board trustees and toward county commissioners. While trustees still have some influence, “it’s not nearly as important a function as it was in the past,” Hasbrouck said.
