Health Renewals Pending completion of a review of the overall emergency preparedness programs of the state and local agencies involved, Council staff recommended that the Department of Health's existing emergency preparedness contract be funded at current levels for the upcoming six months. Staff also recommended the Health audit program be funded for the entire fiscal year. Ellen Haars, the Department of Health's representative to the Council, did not participate in this vote. Portal monitors are devices that can screen individuals for radioactive contamination in the event of a nuclear accident. The current technique is to use hand held devices that require approximately 90 seconds per person to complete the screening process.
Portal monitors can complete the screening process in a matter of seconds.
Many of the individuals who have performed these manual screens for the counties in the past are elderly and cannot be relied upon to be available at all times. The portal monitors are more effective in detecting contamination than hand screening. If contamination is detected, hand screening would be used to pinpoint the location of the radiation. The devices do not require special training on the part of the operators - any experienced radiation technician should be able to operate the portal monitors. The portal monitors are solid state electronic devices and have been personally inspected by Mr. McCaffrey.