The Porter County Board of Health has another new member.
Psychologist Dr. Kimberly Brunt was nominated Tuesday by Commissioner Laura Blaney, while Commissioner Barb Regnitz favored Tom Gooding. But unlike the last appointment process two weeks ago, Commissioner Jim Biggs sided with Blaney, resulting in Brunt's appointment.
Biggs felt that having a psychologist on the board of health would help the county address its mental health challenges, like drug overdoses and teen suicides. "The amount of mental health issues that our public safety agencies are having to deal with compared to a decade ago, just, as a commissioner, has me rattled, very concerned," Biggs explained.
In another reversal, both of the commissioners' nominees were taken from the list of candidates recommended by the current health board members. Last time, Biggs argued that letting a board choose its own members was a "mistake."
At the time, he also said he wanted to settle things on the board. That also seemed to weigh into Commissioner Regnitz' nomination of Gooding on Tuesday.
"He has a tremendous amount of experience in negotiation, in working on a board and having to deal with a number of different personalities," Regnitz said.
Brunt replaces Dr. Ron Michael, who recently resigned.