Bonner County commissioners press Panhandle Health for clinical‑services data before approving budget

Bonner County commissioners told Panhandle Health District officials they will not support the district’s proposed budget until it produces detailed, auditable data on clinical services and staffing costs.

Commissioner Williams, Bonner County’s representative on the Panhandle Health board, said she could not approve the budget as presented and asked why the district continues to operate clinical services that local federally certified providers already offer. "Can I support this budget? No. I cannot," Williams said.

The request for more information grew out of a review of the district’s budget materials and a Saturday workshop in which commissioners and board members identified a number of concerns. Dr. Fletcher, chair of the Panhandle Health District board, told the Bonner County commissioners that the district’s clinical‑services FTEs have been reduced and that the pattern of cuts appeared concentrated in the clinical portfolio, but that the reduction in salaries and benefits did not track proportionally with the drop in FTEs.

Why it matters: Bonner County contributes more than $500,000 to the Panhandle Health District budget and commissioners said they need transparent, itemized data before voting to increase that contribution. Commissioners raised questions about whether taxpayer dollars are subsidizing services that private community providers already deliver and whether the district’s remaining clinical operations are cost‑effective and equitably distributed across the five northern counties the district serves.

Key details from the discussion included:

- Staff and service distribution: Commissioners were told that active, regular days of clinical service were limited to clinics in Kootenai County and one in Bonner County; other counties receive fewer clinic days. One commissioner noted Kootenai County’s population is roughly double that of the other four northern counties combined but that the allocation of clinic time is not proportional, and that Bonner County receives less than a third of the clinical time relative to what it contributes.

- Staffing and turnover: Board members reported recent staff departures in the district’s clinical program, including a senior nurse who left about two months ago and another staffer (Jim) who recently resigned. Commissioners said they were not given exit interviews or full explanations for the departures and asked for rosters of clinical staff assigned to upcoming budget presentations and workshops.

- Data requested: Commissioners asked for raw clinical‑service data (examples cited included CPT codes and days of service by clinic and county), detailed salary and benefits line items, and documentation that demonstrates what unique services, if any, only Panhandle Health provides and where the public can find them.

- Overlap with community providers: Commissioners discussed directing patients to federally certified community clinics rather than maintaining district core clinical services. Mike Baker, CEO of Heritage Health (identified in the meeting as a community provider), was cited by board members as saying his organization could provide most of the services currently run by the district; board members reported Heritage Health does not provide only one program cited in the discussion (STD services) but that it could potentially add that service.

- Budget line‑items and increases: Commissioners questioned several budget items, including a proposed 3% overall budget increase for staff and a capital line item of roughly $200,000 for new carpet in a district building. Commissioners described the carpet request as high and asked whether capital needs could be reduced to lower Bonner County’s contribution.

- Federal programs and reporting: Commissioners were told that COVID testing and related giveaways are almost certainly federally funded and continue to be supported by federal programs. Commissioners also noted that STD reporting is handled by state and federal health authorities and does not necessarily require Panhandle Health to operate a separate surveillance program.

Directions and next steps: Bonner County representatives said they will formally request the raw data and supporting documentation from the district director (identified in the meeting as Eric) ahead of the county’s budget hearing. Commissioner Williams asked the county’s Panhandle Health board representatives to pursue quarterly public reports so county officials and residents can see how tax dollars are being spent. Williams also stated her intention that, without the requested data, Bonner County’s representative should vote against the budget at the Panhandle Health budget hearing.

No formal county vote on the Panhandle Health budget was taken at the workshop. The county representatives said the county will press for the requested information before the Thursday budget hearing and that the Panhandle Health board planned to reconvene the matter in its August session.

Ending: County officials said they expect the district to supply the requested documents and to provide regular, public updates; absent that material, Bonner County’s representatives signaled they will oppose approval of the budget as presented.