These are the 6 finalists for 3 new positions on Tri-Cities bi-county health board
Six finalists have been picked for three new seats on the Benton Franklin Health District Board as a new state law requires new voices to be added to the board.
The three new board members are expected to be named at a March board meeting.
Currently the board consists of six county commissioners — three from Benton County and three from Franklin.
Under a Washington state law passed in 2021, boards must include an equal number of public and elected officials.
That means each county will pick two of their commissioners to serve on the Tri-Cities based health district board for a total of four elected officials.
The four public members of the board, who will serve as volunteers, will include three people selected by the Benton and Franklin county commissions.
The fourth public board member is required to be named by the American Indian Health Commission, which has not communicated any choice to the Benton Franklin Health District.
After turmoil at some health districts across the state during the COVID-19 pandemic, including resistance to mask mandates and the bullying of health officials, the Washington Legislature passed a law n 2021, mandating that boards like the one in Tri-Cities have more diverse members as a way to promote equity in health policies.
The Benton Franklin Health District received applications from 28 for the three public positions.
Each of those positions have specific requirements and several people put in applications for more than one of the positions.
One of the three positions must be filled with an active or retired medical professional or health care provider.
Another is reserved for consumers of public health, such as those who have faced significant health inequities or have used public health services such as supplemental nutrition programs or home visits.
The remaining position must represent organizations working with people experiencing health inequities, current or retired armed services member, the business community or communities regulated by environmental public health.
The health district formed a committee of two county commissioners and key health district staff, who came up with criteria to rank the applicants.
Commissioners chose to interview the nine top scorers, as ranked by key staff. That turned out to be six candidates because some applied for and scored well for more than one position.
Health board finalists
The six finalists are:
▪ Laurel Jackson has been the chief executive of Chaplaincy Health Care in Richland since January 2022.
Her previous experience includes 13 years as senior director of Compass Care at Virginia Mason Memorial in Yakima, according to her LinkedIn profile. She oversaw advancing illness and end-of-life care programs
She holds a certificate in bioethics and medical ethics from Columbia University and earned a doctorate of ministry from the Knox Theological Seminary.
▪ Kathleen Nusbaum is a pharmacist in Kennewick.
▪ Carol Moser, now retired, was the director of Greater Columbia Accountable Community of Health, now called Greater Health Now.
She also was the executive director of the Benton Franklin Community Health Alliance, where she was leader of the Community Health Needs Assessment and the Community Health Improvement Plan in partnership with the Benton Franklin Health District, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She was a Washington state transportation commissioner from 2006 to 2011 and also served on the Richland City Council from 1995 to 2006.
▪ Scott Tomren is the director of campus safety and security at Washington State University Tri-Cities, where he has worked since 2012.
He has a master’s in environmental science and a bachelor’s of arts in history from Washington State University. He also has served as a volunteer firefighter in Kahlotus.
▪ Dr. Wassim Khawandi has served as the president of the Benton Franklin County Medical Society and is a nephrologist at Kadlec Clinic, according to his LinkedIn profile.
In addition to his medical license he holds a master’s of business administration from the George Washington University School of Business.
▪ Marcella Appel is the water resource project manager for the Benton Conservation District.
She earned a master’s of science in environmental engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She is a board member of the Northwest Gifted Child Association.
2-year health board terms
The four new public health board members will be appointed to serve two-year terms as unpaid members and will be allowed to vote on all matters that come before the board, with the exception of setting or changing fees.
The Benton Franklin Health District plays a leadership or management role in a wide array of public health matters.
They include controlling communicable diseases; injury and chronic disease prevention; assessing the health of populations; planning for public health emergencies; help for new mothers and young children; refugee health screening; food safety, such as restaurant inspections; environmental issues, such as permits for septic systems; and maintaining birth and death records.
