CANTON -- St. Lawrence County declared a State of Emergency late on Tuesday.

The decision drew much debate at the council meeting Dec. 9, with nine legislators supporting the plan.

Opposed to declaring the State of Emergency was Kevin Acres, R-Madrid, who said he did not want to do it if it was going to be for lip service. Legilsator Harry Smithers, R-Gouverneur, also raised questions regarding the merity of the call.

He questioned if the move would bring real help to the community. There was also confusion among legislators that the move might bring a mask mandate with it. It was clarified that the two declarations were separate and distinct and that no mask mandate would be issued, though Legislator Margaret Haggard clarified that she would support such a mandate.

St. Lawrence County Public Health Director Jolene Munger as well as St. Lawrence County Board of Health President Dr. Andrew Williams supported the declaration.

Williams said it could position the county to receive help in regard to testing or possibly even assistant from the National Guard, help with supplies or potential funding.

St. Lawrence County Board of Legislators Chair Bill Sheridan discussed the option with the Legislators on Monday evening at the December Board Meeting.

"Legislators from both sides of the aisle determined that the declaration was both timely and important to raise awareness of the current challenges posed to the hospital systems by the current presence of COVID-19 in St. Lawrence County," said Ruth Doyle, St. Lawrence County administrator. Earlier in the day on Monday, Gov. Kathy Hochul released a list of hospitals subject to the most recent State Emergency Declaration that prohibited elective procedures where bed capacity exceeded safe levels due to COVID-19 surges. On the list were several St. Lawrence County hospitals.

"Hospitals across the County have been working tirelessly to support the needs of county residents as the impact of COVID-19 continues to grow and remain at unprecedented levels," Doyle said.

“The St. Lawrence County Board of Health strongly supports the declaration of a State of Emergency. Our county is seeing record levels of COVID 19 infections and hospitalizations. The surge of cases is intensifying as we head into the winter months and shows no sign of decreasing,” stated St. Lawrence County Board of Health President Dr. Andrew Williams. “While the Delta variant is driving our current crisis, cases of the Omicron variant have now been found in New York State (NYS) and may compound our challenges. Our Emergency Services and hospital systems are under increasing stress due to the pandemic.” Dr. Williams continued by stating, “Recently, over one-third (1/3) of all our hospital patients at the two largest acute care hospitals in the County are ill with COVID-19, straining our ability to care for non- COVID related illness. The crisis is impacting our regional hospital partners as well – limiting options for transfer of critically ill patients, even those who require emergency procedures and hospitalization. NYS has mandated that non-emergency procedures and surgeries be suspended at several of our hospitals. Now is the time for our community to re-engage in the efforts to limit the spread of COVID–19. Vaccination for those who are eligible and boosters for those who need them, and masks in indoor settings will substantially reduce the risk of hospitalization and death for members of our community.”

Comments obtained by local hospital representatives echoed the sentiments of Dr. Williams:

“St. Lawrence Health strongly supports St. Lawrence County’s declaration of a state of emergency. Things are as challenging as they have ever been during the past 21 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the large number of COVID patients in our Canton-Potsdam Hospital, the demand for hospital services from non-COVID patients has grown and the overall staffing pool is lower than it was this time last year. While we have implemented several surge/flex plan protocols, negotiated wage increases, and continue to offer enhanced overtime pay, sign-on and referral bonuses for our clinically hard to fill positions, to manage the volume and severity of this situation, we urge our north country community to stay vigilant with safety measures and to get the COVID-19 vaccine so St. Lawrence Health and other area hospitals can continue to maintain same level of care for all patients who need support at this time.” said Jeremy Slaga, SVP of Administration at St. Lawrence Health.

“Similar to other hospitals in the North Country, Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center (CHMC) is experiencing higher than normal volumes of sick patients requiring admission and inpatient treatment. Hospital bed availability is constantly evolving as patients are accepted, discharged or transferred. Control measures have been in place since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure our community receives responsive access to care. Some of these measures include rescheduling non-essential elective surgical procedures and expanding capacity within the parameters of the state’s Surge and Flex Health Care Coordination System. CHMC remains postured to care for patients who meet admission criteria for any medical condition. As with most pandemic-related issues, this is a dynamic situation, and meetings with local and state healthcare entities are currently happening to keep efforts coordinated towards ensuring the best outcomes for our community. The hospital will contact any patients affected by the recent directive to limit certain surgical procedures,” shared by Amanda Hitterman, Executive Director, Foundation, Marketing & Community Relations at Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center.

The Declaration of a State of Emergency for St. Lawrence County will remain in place until Jan. 6, 2022 and will be reviewed prior to that date to determine if an extension should be granted, Doyle said.