MEETING — The Jefferson County Board of Health met in regular session Tuesday. -- Christopher Dacanay

STEUBENVILLE — The first naloxone distribution boxes out of a new order from the Jefferson County General Health District have been placed in various locations, with more available for local organizations to claim.

The JCGHD has received eight emergency kit-style boxes through a partnered statewide recovery grant program. Those boxes will be placed at strategic locations, where organizations are willing to host them, and provide a publicly accessible supply of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone through the health department’s stock.

Health Commissioner Andrew Henry reported during the Jefferson County Health Board’s meeting Tuesday that two of those eight boxes have been placed in the Jefferson County Tower Building near existing AEDs — one in the lobby and the other at the health department’s sixth-floor offices.

“We still have six of the emergency kit-style ones that can go to any agency that would want them,” Henry said.

Additionally, the JCGHD is awaiting an order of four newspaper stand-style boxes that fulfill the same purpose, Henry said. Those have been more highly requested but are on backorder. The Brilliant Treatment Center and Trinity Health System are planned to receive a newspaper stand-style box when they arrive.

Separately, the board approved a $5,300 purchase order to the YMCA Wellness Center at St. John Arena for acquiring a rotating seat recumbent elliptical.

Funds for the purchase come from the Ohio Department of Aging Health Aging Grant, in excess of $300,000, awarded to the JCGHD in November and distributed in chunks to various senior-related programs in the county.

Henry said the aim is to deplete grant funds by the end of the month, in accordance with program requirements. Some of the money was used to purchase items for a senior health fair Monday, though a portion needs to be allocated for use in increasing digital literacy. With those funds, Henry said, the JCGHD plans to purchase iPads and offer user training to seniors.

Also, Nursing Director Kylie Smogonovich reported that the JCGHD’s diaper bank has served 301 children since it was established roughly seven months ago. To support the bank, JCGHD staff members will host a diaper drive at Friday’s Steubenville High School football game, in collaboration with the SHS Key Club, and a Dashing for Diapers 5-K Dec. 14, which will start and end at Historic Fort Steuben and offer sponsorships.

“That is a great program for the portions of the population that we deal with,” board member Terry Bell said of the diaper bank. “Those numbers are just staggering, what you’ve collected and what you’ve given away.”

Smogonovich reported that the nursing staff is pinning down dates for its fall influenza clinics. There are two clinics currently planned for October — one at Urban Mission Ministries Inc. and another at the Richmond Quaker Days. Naloxone distribution will accompany those clinics.

In other business:

• Henry reported that the JCGHD has been invited to present at the Amish Health Conference Nov. 14 at Salt Fork State Park, regarding staff members’ response to the December meningitis outbreak in North and Northwest Jefferson County.

• The board approved five contracts or memorandums of understanding, including with the Baldwin Group for environmental inspection modules, the Center of Marketing and Opinion Research for work on the JCGHD’s 2025 Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan, the Environmental Protection Agency for monitoring semipublic sanitary disposal systems, the city of Steubenville for a partnership in the city’s Choice Neighborhoods grant early action project and the Jefferson Belmont Regional Solid Waste Authority for providing solid waste inspections.

• The board authorized a purchase order of $18,875.00 to CMOR to the 2025 CHIP and CHA. The $28,250 owed for the CHA will be split with Trinity Health System for $14,125 each, though each organization will pay $4,750 for its own CHA.

• The board approved adopting a revised patient financial policy, which previously stated credit and debit card transaction fees would be at $2.50. However, Henry said, if transactions exceed a certain threshold, the fee may be raised. So, the policy was revised to read “Credit card or debit card payments are subject to transaction fees” to reflect that variability.

• The board approved a resolution implementing a revised schedule of fees for mobile food service operations for the 2024 licensing year. Prompted to changes made to the Ohio Administrative Code, the revised schedule now differentiates between high-risk and low-risk mobile food operations — differentiated by the type of food being prepared — and charges low-risk operations a local fee reduced by 50 percent.

• The board had the first of three readings of its 2025 environmental program fees.

• Marc Maragos, director of environmental health, reported that there were 22 calls to the Apex Landfill odor complaint hotline in August and have been 12 so far this month.

• Maragos also reported that the environmental division has signed a letter of support with the Jefferson County Soil and Water Conservation District to continue with its partnership to abate failing septic systems in Jefferson County through the Ohio EPA Water Pollution Control Loan Fund, targeting low-to-moderate-income individuals who cannot pay for the upgrades themselves.

• WIC Director Stephanie Chester reported that the nation is experiencing shortages on two infant formula types due to weather-related incidents at the production plants. However, a large shipment is expected to reach stores soon, with Wal-Mart being the first.

• Chester also reported that the WIC program has 10 local farmer’s market coupon booklets left that program participants can pick up and redeem at the last September Steubenville and Wintersville farmers markets. Redemption started slowly, Chester said, but has been historically higher than previous years due to WIC staff offering them at the markets themselves.

• The board accepted the resignation of Emma Gray, sanitarian in training, effective Oct. 4. Gray, who will be working at the Columbiana County General Health District, was commended by board members and health department staff for her service to the environmental division.