1.28.26 Board of Health

Good afternoon to everyone in the land of Zoom and welcome to the B board of health virtual meeting on Wednesday, January 28th, 2026 scheduled for 3:30 p.m. My name is Thomas Corey. Present with me via Zoom is Michael Coughlin and test current agent of the board, various guests and participants in today's meeting.

I don't have my Hold on.

Okay. Pursuant to the open meeting or and we we're making a video recording of this meeting and uh whether perceived or unpersceived and we're going to be able to use this meeting whether perceived or unpersceived. I hope that will cover me enough. Okay. Call to order. Tess, can we have a roll call?

Thomas Corey.

Yes.

Michael Coughlin.

Yes.

Okay. Uh, we need to approve the minutes of the meeting of Monday, December 8th.

Are there any additions, deletions, or corrections to be made to the minutes of the meeting as printed?

Move to approve the minutes.

Okay. I'll second. Can we have a roll call?

Thomas Corey?

Yes.

Michael Coughlin?

Yes.

Next on the agenda is the application for approval of tattoo practitioner application for Michael Lima of 100 water streets right up against the baseboard to work for flaming balls tattoo and supply skin pins located 1120 Stafford Road.

Okay.

Josh, you're presenting.

Yes, I am.

So, I've reviewed all the paperwork. She has her blood bone pathogen. Um she has her um CPR first aid, her skin course.

Um she's been apprenticing for the with a city permit for the year already. So she is ready to roll. She's been doing really good and she's ready to get her practitioner license.

This is up to the owner.

Okay.

If she wants to have the thermostat checked.

There's someone who should be on mute.

I'm not sure who it is because I can't see everybody. I think hearing background that's supposed to I'm not sure who that is.

Josh go Josh go on mute.

Okay. Um Michael, any questions?

No questions. Move to approve the application.

Okay, I'll second. Tess, can we have a roll call?

Miss Corey?

Yes.

Michael Coughlin?

Yes. Okay, it's a the it it is approved.

Josh will will take care of the paperwork to issue you the license. Uh good luck.

Next on the agenda.

Next on the agenda is a tobacco violations hearing. This is the third offense of the act to modernize tobacco control at stop and save 101 President Avenue, Fall River 02720.

Is Jennifer with us?

Yes.

Jennifer, if you if you would please.

Okay. Uh, so on January 2nd, I was completing a round of compliance checks.

Uh, Stop and Save was due for a recheck due to their past violation in September. At approximately 10:46 a.m., I sent a female youth buyer into the store to purchase a tobacco product. She was able to purchase a single backwood cigar for $1.50 using a $20 bill. The youth described the clerk as an older male that was slightly bald. No um ID was checked.

This was their third violation within 36 months of 105 CMR 665. So, a cease and desist was issued for selling a tobacco product to a person under the minimum age, which included a $5,000 fine that's due this Friday, January 30th, and a 30-day suspension. Uh, prior history shows that the first violation took place on October 3rd, 2024.

That was for having flavored tobacco products in the store. They were issued a $1,000 fine at that time. And then the second violation was for selling to a minor on September 4th, 2025. They were issued a $2,000 fine. And at that September meeting, the board uh waved the 7-day suspension. Right now, in question to the board is the tobacco suspension.

Mike, do you want to deliver the thunder or shall I?

Well, why don't why don't we see what what the uh uh store and apparently you're represented by an attorney uh has to say before we before we do that, Tom.

Okay.

Um good afternoon, gentlemen. My name is attorney Joe Fingless. I have an office at 10 North Main Street in Florida, Mass. I'm here on behalf of my client, Mr. Khan from Stop and Save Convenience.

Uh we appreciate you guys uh having this meeting tonight and entertaining uh our request which you'll soon hear. Um we don't dispute the facts. I mean it is my client's third violation within 36 months. You know my client wholeheartedly supports what the board does tobacco control officer does. He has no problem with their enforcement action whatever they do. And even my client said to me just about an hour

ago, he said he would be upset if someone sold to his minor children also.

I mean, so we we really have no issue with the violation or anything else, but we're strictly asking that the board has the option to modify the um the type of discipline that that could be issued here today.

And um we're asking that it be modified um based on the following reasons.

For 25 years straight, they have never had a violation.

They hired a new employee in 2024 in in October. He was going through training.

That's how the violation occurred from the new employee.

Unfortunately, that employee was terminated because he was trained. He had come in for a week of training. He knew the drill. He knew that you have to ask for an ID all the time. Not if you look 50 or 60. It's like when you go to Fenway Park, you go to Gillette, you got to ask an ID every single time. And he just didn't follow the protocol and the first suspension. And back then, my

client never contested it. I mean, it was a violation. It's a violation. The second incident happened in September 2025.

Once again, a second new employee who went through the training, knew the protocol, and once again didn't do as he was requested.

And uh my client, he paid paid the fine that time. The third time was the third new employee who didn't follow protocol. again. Um it's just very difficult to find people that are going to come in and work at a convenience store setting like that.

It's typically an older or retired individual um who doesn't have a lot of computer skills and when they're when they're operating and they're doing that it's very tough to train them and I think a lot of them get nervous. That's not an excuse. I think it's just a fact of life on the behalf of these people. But for 25 years, they did not have a single incident in 25 years. It's only after

they started hiring these new people starting in 2024 and they got the first violation. 2025, they got their second violation and just recently they got their third.

And we're [clears throat] we're just hoping that the board could decrease the violation from 5,000 to something that is more bearable. The reason being is my clients been in the red for the last six months.

Um because of the construction that's going on down on Route 79, that whole plaza, I mean, everyone in there is is really hurting for business. I mean, um they've been putting out of their pocket for the last six months dress just trying to keep the the uh business afloat. You know, if anyone comes down in that area during during certain times of the days in the morning and the

afternoon, there could be a 20 25 minute backup from 95 coming down that area.

All right. All right. Mr. Finlass, I I think we understand the request. Uh couple of points. Um after the second violation, we did modify. Okay. We did not suspend. We had the option to suspend then and we modified it. And I I remember this discussion. We we made it very clear that we were modifying at this time and there would be no modifications if there was a third hearing. I appreciate some of the

extenduating circumstances that you've shared with us. Uh hiring new employee, finding good employees is is a challenge, but it's a challenge for everybody uh who sells tobacco products in the city. And we don't see that many of these. So I don't know what is going on that's unique at at at stop and save. Uh and I I have I am not the the chairman may have a different view but I am not

inclined uh to uh modify at this time.

Uh as as far as the concern about the the the the amount of the fine I was surprised you even asked for that. We I I wasn't even thinking that that that would be requested and I'm not inclined to modify that either. Uh as as far as I I do note that, you know, I'm well aware of of the traffic issues down in that part of the city, but they're pretty

much over now. The work is done uh and and you can get around there fine. So I would imagine that that the the traffic pattern will adjust itself accordingly in the coming weeks and months. So that's that's my thinking. I I don't know, Mr. Chairman, if you have a different view, if I could just respond to your comments before he he offers m before Mr. Cory gets in.

Respectfully, Mr. Clawen, I I don't know how often you go down there, but I I I live in Somerset. I go that route every single morning, every single afternoon.

It's still a nightmare. It It hasn't gotten better. The construction is not nearly over because they're still doing sidewalk work. They're doing lamp insulation, and they're still doing, believe it or not, landscaping work down there. I mean, it's still, you know, very, very difficult, eerie down there.

I mean, and it's not by coincidence or some, you know, mistake that for 25 years straight, they never had a single violation. Marilyn would come in there sometimes 10 times a month and you know he would talk to Marilyn and Marilyn would say I mean I imagine I imagine the majority of tobacco permits in the city that the the ownh holders of those have never had any an an issue at all in the same 25

year period but you've had but this establishment has had three. All right.

So I I don't want to get into debate with you Mr. Fingers Tom. What what are your thoughts? Well, as you know, I'm a small business owner, too, and I go through those same challenges of hiring people and training, and you have to keep on them all the time for the training.

Do and and you have tobacco uh um training to do. I have HIPPA and fraud, waste, and abuse, and cyber security, and cultural training and uh money laundering training and all kinds of things. And the board has always used this process as an educational tool. Uh the first time, oh, you get the fine.

The second time when you come in, the board has always had the ability to to put a suspension in then. And the board has always said, "No, we're going to we're going to send you out there without the suspension, but if you come back a third time, there will be the 30-day suspension." And I uh I'm in agreement with Mr. Coughlin that uh the 30-day suspension um will stand.

Is there any um possibility of modifying the monetary penalty?

I penalty I think is set by the state.

Yeah, but you have the suspensions are set by us per the statute I have right here. You can modify it any way you desire including the monetary fine. Again, I am disincclined to do that also because again, we've always used this as an educational opportunity. Um, for for many years, we had people in and then for maybe six or seven years, we didn't have any tobacco violations in and in the last two or three years,

they're starting to become more frequent. Um, again, I am not inclined to modify either the fine or the suspension.

Michael, can we have a motion? But Mr. Mr. Cy, I do love your button. Be kind.

Thank you.

I do love it.

I I Yeah, I I I move to u uh put forward the 30-day suspension.

Okay. I'll second. Uh Tess, can we have a roll call?

Thomas Corey?

Yes.

Michael Coughlin? Yes, Jennifer. When uh when can uh this all happen?

Um I I can go to the store on Friday if that works. Friday morning.

Okay. So, it will start Friday morning the uh the 30th and it will run through February. Actually, it'll run through March, won't it? March 2nd.

because Okay, Mr. Fingless, I I I thank you for your time and I uh I am sympathetic to your client, but uh he's got to do better.

Okay. Thank you very much, gentlemen. I appreciate your time.

Okay, good day.

You guys have a great night.

Good night. Byebye.

Next is the uh the director's report.

Tess, welcome back. And uh what do you have for us today? Um, happy new year, Tess.

Yeah, I know. I there's been a lot a lot going on since um since I went out on leave, but I am back. I came back early January. Um, and so I'm kind of just getting up to speed on what the team has been doing over the last few months. Um, they've been doing a lot a lot of great work. Um and so um I don't have too much of a report other other than we are

seeing you know certainly high rates um rates of respiratory you know viruses.

So um encouraging folks to continue to get their flu shot. Um it's not too late to get the flu shot. Um you know there's certainly a lot of unfortunate messaging um from the federal level in terms of vaccinations um including the flu shot.

So, we're still doing what we can here to um to encourage folks to get those vaccines um particularly the flu for anybody six months and up.

Very good.

No, you haven't heard about hasn't been anything about measles as their test.

Have you heard anything?

No, not here. Um not here in Mass that I've heard anything. Um I know there's the an outbreak. What is it in South Carolina? South Carolina. Yes.

Yeah. Other parts of the country. But but I I read a piece in the Globe recently that even our vaccination rates uh for MMR is has gone down. Uh and so we're potentially at risk at some point down the road.

Yeah. I think particularly for MMR it needs to be like really high like 95% to have her immunity. Um, I don't know the rates off the top of my head for for for Massachusetts, but um, as that hesitancy continues to come into play, you know, the likelihood is that we will in in my zip code in the city, which is 0272, the Highlands, it's in the 70s.

Yeah.

Or it's a range 70 to some something. I I don't remember what what the higher range is, but I was alarmed. Yeah, we'll have to do a deep dive. I'll talk to Hannah, our EPI about that too to see what we can we can do um and kind of continue working with the schools on messaging and EMS. I know they their program where they're getting um new students vaccinated, but it's not

just those new students that we need to um make sure are on the um on the vaccine schedule.

Okay. And he here here in the pharmacy world, we're seeing a lot of activity with flu and RSV and COVID, believe it or not. Yeah.

Yeah.

Again, my clientele is an older clientele and they're they're uh there's less hesitancy in amongst my my clientele.

That makes sense.

Yes.

Okay. Anything else, Tess?

Uh no, I don't have anything else.

Okay. Was anything received for citizens input?

No. No citizens input.

Okay. Next would be to confirm the date for the next meeting. Following our usual patent, it would be the last Monday of the month is the 23rd. Okay.

No future snowstorms, things like that.

That should be fine.

Be fine. With Dr. Gleardi.

Okay. Very good. Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize for my uh my technical connections today. Um I really did I usually sign in about passed three and right away um I knew I had a problem. So I I apologize when I signed in and didn't see you. Yeah. Yeah.

All right. So um um can we have a motion to adjurnn?

So moved.

I'll second. Can we have a roll call?

Thomas Corey.

Yes.

Michael Coughlin.

Yes.

All right, everyone. Have a wonderful rest of the day. Stay warm and stay safe.