The Revere Board of Health held its first regular meeting of the new year on January 23 in the City Council Chambers. On hand for the session were the board's three members, chairperson Dr. Drew Bunker, Kathleen Savage, and Viviana Catano, and Board of Health Clerk Paula Sepulveda. Director of Public Health Lauren Buck presented the monthly communicable disease report which covered the period since the board's last meeting on October 24. Buck noted that the city is amidst the flu and respiratory illness season and said that there were 307 reported cases of the flu, 118 for COVID-19, and one Mpox case.
She also spoke briefly about the avian flu, noting that although risk of exposure for humans presently is at a low level, the CDC is monitoring the situation. Buck warned that persons who keep chickens should be on the alert for possible infections among their flocks.
Michael Wells, the city's Health Agent/Director of Inspectional Services (ISD), then presented his report, which covered the most recent period. Wells said that ISD issued 46 certificates of fitness for housing units; performed 13 reinspections; and investigated 21 interior complaints. In the food department, ISD performed 27 routine food inspections, seven reinspections, three complaint inspections, and one pre-opening inspection. In the exterior sanitation division, ISD agents issued 22 citations for accumulation of trash, litter or debris; three for carts out at improper times; one for a commercial vehicle in a residential neighborhood, 29 for overflowing dumpsters; 186 for improper placement of trash and bulky items; eight for improper storage of garbage and trash; one for junk heaps; one for multiple unregistered vehicles; and 34 for sump pump violations/failure to remove snow and ice.
Wells reminded all residents and business owners that they are obligated per the city ordinance to remove snow and ice from the sidewalks in front of their homes and businesses sufficiently wide for a stroller to pass.
The board then heard a presentation, which included a slide deck, from Barry Keppard, the Director of the Health Dept. for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) who also is a member of the North Suffolk Public Health Collaborative that includes Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. He said that the collaborative came together in 2016 because those communities face significant public health problems and suffer from a higher rate of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, and asthma, as well as higher levels of mental health and substance abuse disorders, compared to the rest of the state.
He pointed out that one of the purposes of the collaborative is for the three communities to share staff in order to more effectively address the issues they face and to develop regional health programming, such as the recent successful childhood vaccination efforts. He noted that the collaborative benefited the three communities by working together to bring state funding to the communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to a question from Bunker, Keppard said that the funding for the collaborative initially came from the three communities, but now it comes from state grants.
Keppard also noted that a new part of the program will require each of the three communities to send a member from its board of health to the collaborative's quarterly meetings in order to contribute to the future decision-making process of the collaborative. The last piece of business before the board pertained to the renewal of Body Art Licenses for both businesses and individual practitioners for the coming year. Buck informed the board that all 16 of the applicants passed their recent inspections and have met the necessary requirements for the renewal of their licenses. The members accepted Buck's recommendations and unanimously voted to renew all of the licenses for 2025.