Montrose County approves $125,000 for Basin Clinic and names Mirza Ahmed public health director

Montrose County commissioners on May 7 approved an unbudgeted $125,000 payment to the Basin Clinic in Naturita and, in a separate action, adopted Resolution BOH 1-2025 appointing Mirza Ahmed as the county’s Director of Public Health.

The funding request was presented by Finance Director Cindy Dunlap and approved by motion of Commissioner Scott Mijares, seconded by Commissioner Sean Pond; the board voted unanimously to authorize the additional 2025 appropriation for the clinic. The clinic funding was described on the record as an unbudgeted expense for the 2025 budget year.

The board then convened as the Montrose County Board of Health and adopted Resolution BOH 1-2025 to appoint Mirza Ahmed as Director of Public Health. Commissioner Sue Hansen moved the resolution and Commissioner Sean Pond seconded; the motion carried unanimously. The resolution number and the appointment were recorded in the public minutes.

Why it matters: Basin Clinic provides local primary-care services for Naturita and surrounding communities; the board’s emergency allocation supplements 2025 operations and does not appear in the previously adopted budget. The appointment of a public health director establishes a named official to lead county public-health functions moving forward.

What the board recorded: The transcript lists the funding amount ($125,000) and records the resolution adoption by title (Resolution BOH 1-2025) and the appointee’s name (Mirza Ahmed). Neither the transcript nor attachments in the minutes provide additional detail about the clinic’s budget shortfall or the new director’s start date or prior position; those items are not specified in the public record provided.

The board took these actions during its regular session in Nucla and adjourned at 10:27 a.m.