Jording grants limited exemptions to state orders

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
Dr. Mike Jording, Weston County’s public health officer, said that he has issued exemptions to orders from Gov. Mark Gordon and the Wyoming Department of Health regarding the operation of “nonessential” businesses across the state.
On April 8 during a virtual meeting with other health officials and emergency responders from Weston County, Jording said that the orders coming from the Department of Health give him some authority to allow some services to operate. 
“I have granted some exemptions to the gatherings. I have given exemptions to the Upton schools and Newcastle schools for their junior and senior high school woods classes and for FFA (Future Farmers of America) projects,” Jording said. 
After speaking with the principals, Jording said, he laid out a plan to allow teachers to have a small number of students in to finish end-of-the-year projects. The exemption was geared toward graduating seniors, he said. 
“I have given them rules. They are taking temperatures and anyone who has a fever of 100.4 or greater needs to seek medical advice and cannot participate,” Jording said. 
Other exemptions include a massage parlor that provides medical services and a beauty salon with tanning beds in Upton that provides services with a medical purpose. Tanning bed use was granted for essential workers who suffer from psoriasis and depression. 
“I have tightened the restrictions a bit with some of those exemptions as the situation has progressed,” Jording said. 
Jording later told the News Letter Journal that being the public health officer during a pandemic is nothing he has experienced during his 20-plus years in the position. 
Before, he said, he would rarely visit with the public health nurse and the state health official during potential emergency or actual emergency situations. 
“They have always been spur-of-the-moment-type emergencies,” Jording said. Some examples are infections and potential weather-related emergencies, he said. 
“With the onset of the coronavirus, it has been something that I do almost daily,” Jording said. “I review the outbreak throughout the state and area. I go over the tests we are doing.”
According to Jording, his role as public health officer is to make sure the community is complying with and fulfilling the orders from the governor and state health officer. 
“I have to make sure our county is complying as best as we can,” Jording said.