Henry County Supervisors declare public health disaster emergency in response to COVID-19 outbreak

HENRY COUNTY - The Henry County Supervisors approved a declaration of public health disaster emergency in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

At their meeting on Thursday morning, the supervisors received an update from Shelley Van Dorin, the director of Henry County Public Health, who asked the board to make the declaration in order to access additional funds and resources to combat the pandemic.

Van Dorin said currently, the county still only has one confirmed case but 'cases around [the county] are increasing.”

She added her department was working to procure personal protective equipment for local health care professionals and N95 masks and gloves were expected to arrive that day and ready for distribution the following morning. Van Dorin also updated the supervisors on efforts from the Henry County Health Center including the recent respiratory triage clinic.

'This declaration will help us receive FEMA money moving forward. And I also reached out to the Iowa Department of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and they are sending some funds our way for this response,” Van Dorin said.

In response, the supervisors declared 'the emergence of COVID-19 in Henry County a public health disaster emergency.”

The declaration will 'activate the disaster response and recovery aspects of the Henry County Comprehensive Emergency Plan and those additional response plans applicable to this disaster emergency and enable the deployment of emergency funds and any available county and municipal resources.”