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Mid Valley Hospital CEO urges county to fill commissioner vacancy after board misses 90‑day deadline
Summary
Mid Valley Hospital’s new CEO told Okanogan County commissioners the hospital board missed a 90‑day window to fill a vacant commissioner seat on April 30, transferring appointment authority to the county for an additional 90 days and prompting outreach to find a qualified resident of Hospital District 3’s District 1 (Okanogan area).
Andy Bertapelle, the new chief executive officer of Mid Valley Hospital, told the Okanogan County Board of Commissioners that the hospital’s board failed to fill a vacancy within the statutory 90‑day period, moving the appointment authority to the county.
“I'm Andy Bertapelle. I'm the, brand new CEO for Mid Valley Hospital,” Bertapelle said, explaining he moved to the community in early April and discovered a vacancy on the hospital board arising from a January 30 resignation. “That 90 days actually expired, on April 30 at 5PM,” he said, citing the statutory timeline discussed during the meeting.
Bertapelle said the hospital received three applicants (one on Feb. 26, two on March 4) but, after checking addresses, none of those applicants resided in the geographically defined District 1 for the hospital‑district seat. The hospital board therefore did not appoint someone within 90 days, and under the statute cited in the discussion the county legislative authority now has the power to appoint for the next 90 days — a total of roughly 180 days from the resignation date to fill the seat.
Why it matters: the vacant seat is one of five commissioners of Public Hospital District No. 3; state law and the hospital district’s rules require the appointee to reside in the specified hospital commissioner district (District 1, described in the meeting as centered around Okanogan). The CEO and county commissioners said they want a qualified, local resident in the role because hospital governance affects community health services and planning.
Commissioners and hospital representatives discussed steps to find a resident candidate. Bertapelle said the hospital posted the opening in the local paper and on social media and has continued outreach; county officials said the auditor’s office could provide maps or precinct listings to clarify the district’s boundaries. County commissioners asked hospital staff to forward any vetted applications to the county for consideration and suggested county staff would schedule an appointment meeting if candidates are identified in time to meet the statutory deadline.
Commissioners and hospital officials also discussed potential longer‑term options such as converting commissioner positions to at‑large seats to ease future recruiting, but participants said that would require additional discussion and is not a short‑term fix for the current vacancy.
Bertapelle offered to continue outreach and to meet prospective candidates in person; county officials asked the hospital to send the district description or bylaws and for staff to obtain or confirm the map from the auditor’s office. No formal county action was taken at the meeting; commissioners agreed to place the item on a future agenda to receive applications and consider making the appointment within the statutory window.
Ending: Hospital and county officials said they will continue coordinated outreach (including contacts with local public‑health and medical community leaders) and that the county intends to act before the statutory deadline. Hospital CEO Bertapelle said he would share contact information and help host potential candidates.
