Milford Select Board Disputes Health Dept. $50K Stimulus Request

MILFORD, MA — A Milford Board of Health request for a slice of the town's federal stimulus allotment came under fire at Monday's Select Board meeting, with members insinuating the money was going to be diverted for employee bonuses.

The tense exchange came one month after the Select Board approved pandemic bonuses for a select group of town employees who worked during the pandemic, excluding anyone who worked remotely at any point.

At Monday's meeting — which came almost exactly two years into the coronavirus pandemic — Director of Public Health Jacquelyn Murphy asked the selectmen for $50,000 to buy medical supplies and host future COVID-19 and influenza vaccine clinics.

"[T]he Board of Health will need funding for potential booster clinics, clinics for young people (i.e., under age 5) when a vaccine is approved for use in that age group, and replenishing supplies which were depleted during the COVID-19 pandemic," Murphy's letter said.

Before a vote on the request, Selectman Tom O'Loughlin appeared to accuse Murphy of wanting to use the money to give $1,500 bonuses to Board of Health staff. Murphy's letter did not request any money for bonuses — and she told the Select Board that there was no plan to use the federal funds for anything other than public health initiatives.

"I have sound info that was a probability," he said during the meeting.

In February, the Board of Selectmen approved using federal stimulus money to hand out $1,500 premium payments to police, firefighters, dispatchers and custodians. Board of Health employees were not eligible for the bonuses because they sometimes worked outside Town Hall.

"I'd be very, very discouraged if any of that was used for stipends," Board of Selectmen Chair Michael Walsh said. "I know factually the health department was not in the building every single day like police and fire and the other people."

Milford is getting about $8 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act. The town has about $550,000 left to spend. O'Loughlin, the former Milford police chief, estimated it would cost the town much more than $550,000 to give bonuses to every town employee who worked during the pandemic.

"For me, it's to ensure something doesn't take place that's going to create that financial burden," he said.

The Board of Selectmen did ultimately approve Murphy's $50,000 request, but attached a provision that the money could not be used for employee bonuses.

Milford Board of Health workers were on the front lines of the pandemic, most recently helming vaccine clinics that have resulted in the town having one of the highest vaccination rates — about 80 percent — in eastern Worcester County. Murphy said the town alone has vaccinated over 4,000 residents, plus 23,000 more Milford residents through the regional Southern Worcester County COVID-19 Vaccination Collaborative, a joint vaccination effort between the health departments of Uxbridge, Northbridge, Mendon, Douglas, Bellingham, Blackstone, Hopedale, Millville, Oxford, Upton and Sutton.

The town may have to continue holding vaccine clinics for some time to come. The CEO of Pfizer said this week that a fourth vaccine dose will be necessary sometime later this year. COVID-19 vaccines are also being developed for very young children.

Pfizer is conducting clinical trials on COVID-19 vaccines for people under age 5, and inoculations could be available later this spring. The Pfizer vaccine is available to anyone over age 5, while the Moderna version is still only available to people over age 17.