September 2020
IN THIS
ISSUE
Politicians pay attention to the Point, page 7
Hospital district goes for enhanced status quo
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Crime mostly down on Point, page 14
B.C.-bound students required to quarantine, page15
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The Salish Sea sets sail for Blaine ...
B y P a t G r u bb and Meg Olson (Ed. Note: This story was originally published online and has been updated with new information.) In a 2-1 decision, Point Roberts hospital district commissioners voted to award the service provider contract to the current operator, Bellingham’s SuperTrack Urgent Care clinic. Commissioners Kandace Harper and Richard Dennis voted in favor of continuity while Stephen Falk voted for the challenger, the Shields Company. There were 40 or more people in attendance at the special remote Zoom meeting held August 18. The special meeting was held after district superintendent Barbara Wayland, commissioner Harper and members of the public called for more time to examine the competing proposals at the district’s regular meeting held one week earlier. Being a special meeting, no public comments were allowed. Harper began the discussion by stating, “I would like SuperTrack to continue providing the clinic’s services,” adding, “The infrastructure to do so is already in place and viable. SuperTrack is financially stable and established, they have experienced billers and have a large medical staff for backup. They have experience with telemedicine … they have experience negotiating with insurance companies and healthcare IT.” She pointed out that when SuperTrack first began operating the clinic, the principals agreed to provide services to patients even before arrangements had been completed with health insurers and had never been reimbursed for those costs. Harper described the process of transferring patient information from the previous provider, UnityCare, as “a nightmare” and said the pandemic had added stress to Point Roberts residents. “Changing to a new provider without experience in running a medical clinic would add more (See Hospital, page 3)
s The inaugural voyage of the Point Roberts to Blaine ferry getting ready to sail at 9:30 a.m. on August 25. The sailing was fully booked shortly after the service was announced by the Port of Bellingham. Photo by Pat Grubb
Temporary ferry service from the Point begins B y P a t G r u bb and Grace McCarthy (Ed. Note: This story was originally published online and has been updated with new information.) A temporary ferry service operating out of Point Roberts began Tuesday, August 25. The Port of Bellingham started the now once-a-week ferry service to help those stranded on Point Roberts reach the mainland for shopping, doctor visits and
other necessities. It’s offered free of charge on a first-come, first-serve, advanced-reservation basis to Point Roberts residents. Whatcom Transportation Authority is providing a shuttle from Blaine Harbor to Cordata Station in Bellingham. The Port is currently exploring the idea of increasing the frequency and having the ferry go from Point Roberts to Bellingham in the morning with a return trip in the afternoon, according to executive director Rob Fix, who says the details are still being
School district offers furlough to service employees By Grace McCarthy The Blaine school board voted unanimously to approve a letter of agreement between the district and a union representing school service employees that will furlough employees until October 31. Under this agreement, staff such as bus drivers, food service providers and paraeducators will keep their health insurance. “This is not the ideal but given all the things that we know right now, it’s where
I think we can feel good about the support we’ve given our people,” said Blaine school district superintendent Christopher Granger during the August 24 school board meeting. Employees will be asked to volunteer for furlough, first by those who are high risk for Covid-19 and then in seniority order, according to the agreement. The district will assign furlough in reverse seniority if the district needs to reduce more staff than people who volunteer, the agreement
states. This comes after an August 18 layoff announcement to union members from Blaine’s Service Employees International Union 925 chapter. Local union representatives said they sent the letter after receiving the impression that the district would not budge with negotiations. Granger told the All Point Bulletin previously that the district believed it was still in negotiations at that time. (See School, page 3)
worked out. The change would give people more time in Bellingham, he said. The ferry would overnight in Bellingham. The Port is also developing a dedicated online reservation application; they are currently working on a jerry-rigged survey program which currently indicates that “This survey is locked.” Fix says that’s because the next sailing on Tuesday, September 1 is already fully booked. That sailing (See Ferry, page 6)
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Church ............................................. 11 Classifieds ......................................... 14 Coming Up ....................................... 14 Library ............................................. 13 Obituary ........................................... 15 Opinion ............................................... 4 Sheriffs.............................................. 13 Tides ................................................. 13