Eee Roundtable Moves to Oswego School Office

11 A.M. Forum Bringing Top Experts On Deadly Disease

The location of State Senator Patty Ritchie’s Senate Roundtable on Eastern Equine Encephalitis on Thursday has been moved to the Oswego City School District Office at 120 East First Street.

The 11 a.m. forum, sponsored by the Senate Committees on Agriculture and the Senate Health Committee, was originally scheduled for the Oswego County Legislative Chambers. It was moved to provide more seating.

Top state and local experts on the deadly mosquito borne disease will discuss how New York State can better coordinate and improve efforts to monitor and control potentially deadly outbreaks of the disease in Central and Northern New York.

Senator Kemp Hannon, the chair of the Senate’s Health Committee, and a widely recognized expert on state health issues, will co-chair the discussion.

“The events of the past year have driven home that Oswego County and Central New York are ground zero in New York State’s battle with this deadly disease,” Senator Ritchie said. “My forum is bringing together New York State’s top experts to see how New York State can work with local officials to improve our efforts to monitor and combat this virus and the mosquitoes that infect humans and animals.”

“Over the past 40 years, five people have been killed, all of them in Central New York,” Senator Ritchie said. “But it is primarily a scourge of our agricultural community. Nine horses and two dogs died this year alone. The disease was found in 31 mosquito pools - 23 in Oswego, 6 in Onondaga County and 2 in Oneida counties. One of the horses died in St. Lawrence County.”

The forum will feature:

- New York State Department of Health Deputy Commissioner for Public Health Dr. Guthrie Birkhead

- New York State Agriculture and Markets Dr. David Smith, state's top veterinarian

- New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Regional Director Ken Lynch

- Dr. Belinda Thompson, Cornell University Veterinary College, leading expert on animal health

- Dr. Dennis Norfleet, Oswego County Director of Public Health

- Evan Walsh, Associate Public Health Sanitarian for Oswego County

- Jeff Williams, Deputy Director of Governmental Relations for NY Farm Bureau

- Nancy Weber, President of Oswego Farm Bureau

- John DeHollander, District Manager, Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District

The event is open to the public. But participation is by invitation only.