The following is a letter co-signed by members of the Humboldt-Del Norte County Medical Society:
Dear Community,
We are your physicians. You have honored us by entrusting your lives to us, as well as the lives of your
loved ones. We are also your neighbors, your friends, and your relatives. We share with you a deep love
of this region and of our communities. Like you, we dream of a safe, Covid-free future.
Please get vaccinated. We ask this from the bottom of our hearts. As your physicians, and as the people
with whom you have worked, played, laughed, and cried, we must admit we are tired. We will keep
working, of course. But we are tired. We are tired of the suffering, pain and death that can be avoided by
getting vaccinated.
We have studied the data, and we have seen the benefits of vaccination with our own eyes. The vaccines
are well tested, very safe, and highly effective. Yes, masking must continue, especially with the highly
contagious Delta variant. But nothing is as important as being vaccinated.
You’ve trusted us with every other aspect of your health. Please trust us with this. We are not asking
you to do anything that we have not already done. Please, for the sake of our community: the young, the
old, and all the in-betweens, get vaccinated.
Signed,
G. Beth Abels, M.D. (Internal Medicine)
Igor Z. Abolnik, M.D. (Infectious Disease)
Christian D. Agricola, M.D. (Psychiatry)
John Aryanpur, M.D. (NeuroSurgery)
Steven E. Aussenberg, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Donald I. Baird, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Gary H. Baker, M.D. (Radiology, Ret.)
Connie V. Basch, M.D. (Family Medicine)
J. Kim Bauriedel, M.D. (Urology, Ret.)
Brandon E. Bireley, D.O. (General Surgery)
Michael T. Borrello, M.D. (Interventional Pain Management)
Kevin J. Caldwell, M.D. (Family Medicine)
William P. Carlson, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Joseph E. Carroll, M.D. (Family Medicine, Ret.)
Katie M. Cassel, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Luther F. Cobb, M.D. (General Surgery)
Christopher L. Cody, M.D. (Pediatrics, Ret.)
Caroline L. Connor, M.D., MPH (Family Medicine)
Nathan R. Copple, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Emily L. Dalton, M.D. (Pediatrics)
Amy L. Darwin, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Tamara S. Dennis, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Stephen R. Dieker,Jr., M.D. (Anesthesiology)
John Disiere, M.D. (Age Management/Cosmetic)
Stephanie S. Dittmer, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Ishai Erez, M.D. (Anesthesiology)
Kim S. Ervin, M.D. (Gynecology)
Katherine A. Estlin, M.D. (Family Medicine/ Deputy Health Officer)
Neal E. Feuerman, M.D. (Anesthesiology)
Alan J. Fischel, M.D. (Anesthesiology)
Leslie S. Fittinghoff, M.D. (Pediatrics)
Matthew M. Fluke, M.D. (Radiology)
Teresa L. Frankovich, M.D., MPH (Pediatrics)
Corinne E. Frugoni, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Eric H. Gerdes, D.O. (Emergency Medicine)
Gregory N. Gibb, M.D. (Ophthalmology)
Bret R. Gorham, D.O. (Emergency Medicine)
Peggy L. Grossman, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Lei H. Han, M.D. (Family Medicine/Hospitalist)
Jennifer A. Heidmann, M.D. (Internal Medicine)
Gregory S. Holst, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Ian P. Hoffman, M.D., MPH (FM / Public Health Officer)
Malia A. Honda, M.D. (Internal Medicine)
May C. Hong, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Ted R. Humphry, M.D. (Pediatrics, Ret.)
George W. Ingraham, M.D. (Ophthalmology, Ret.)
Kendra N. Iskander, M.D. (General Surgery)
Erik J. Janssen, M.D. (Ophthalmology)
Andrew C. Johnston, M.D. (Internal Medicine)
Jeffrey S. Johnston, M.D. (Anesthesiology)
Stephen M. Kamelgarn, M.D. (Family Medicine, Ret.)
Michelle M. Keeter, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Martin E. Kernberg, M.D. (Radiology)
Bruce E. Kessler, M.D. (Internal Medicine, Ret.)
Charles I. Knoll, M.D. (Phys. Med/Rehab)
Steven J. Korenstein, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Marissa L. Kummerling, M.D. (Family Medicine)
John C. Kurylo, M.D. (Orthopedics)
Courtney C. Ladika, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Lee R. Leer, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Harry B. Lesch, M.D. (Psychiatry)
Join Y. Luh, M.D. (Radiation Oncology)
Tuan A. Luu, M.D. (Emergency Medicine)
Dusten M. Macdonald, M.D. (Radiation Oncology)
Marcelle O. Mahan, M.D. (Family Medicine)
M. Ellen Mahoney, M.D. (General Surgery)
Thach D. Mai, D.O. (Anesthesiology)
Michael F. Mangahas, M.S., M.D. (Pediatrics)
John S. Mastroni, M.D. (Ophthalmology)
Allen S. Matthew, M.D. (Nephrology)
Kate McCaffrey, D.O. (Family Medicine, Ret.)
Mary L. Meengs, M.D. (FM / Deputy Health Officer)
Louise A. Minor, M.D. (Ophthalmology, Ret.)
Michael B. Mizoguchi, M.D. (Ophthalmology)
John A. Montgomery, M.D. (General Surgery, Ret.)
Christopher R. Myers, D.O. (General Surgery)
Michael A. Newdow, M.D. (Emergency Medicine)
Julie M. Ohnemus, M.D. (Family Medicine/Addiction Medicine)
Margot L. Oliver, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Philip L. Olkin, M.D. (Family Medicine, Ret.)
Alison M. Palacios, D.O. (Family Medicine)
William B. Parks, M.D. (Pediatrics)
Lorien M. Paulson, M.D. (Otolaryngology)
David A. Philips, M.D. (Interventional Cardiology)
Madeleine S. Ramos, M.D. (Allergy and Immunology)
Jerryl L. Rubin, M.D. (Psychiatry, Ret.)
Thomas J. Rydz, M.D. (General Surgery)
Sarah A. Scher, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Uzi M. Selcer, M.D. (Infectious Disease, Ret.)
Lawrence A. Senffner, M.D. (Internal Medicine)
Nicole C. Shattuck, D.O. (Emergency Medicine)
Alexey Shereshevsky, M.D. aka Dr. Shev (Family Medicine)
Glenn O. Siegfried, M.D. (Emergency Medicine)
Robert E. Soper, M.D. (Psychiatry)
Candy A. Stockton, M.D. (Family Medicine/Addiction Medicine)
Kusum G. Stokes, M.D. (Gastroenterology)
Aaron M. Stutz, M.D. (EM / Del Norte Public Health Officer)
Masato Sugiura, D.O. (FM / Hospitalist)
Donna M. Sund, D.O. (Family Medicine)
Thomas H. Taylor, M.D. (Emergency Medicine)
Irv M. Tessler, M.D. (Psychiatry)
Jessica L. VanArsdale, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Amy G. Voet, D.O. (Anesthesiology)
Kelvin K. Vu, D.O. (Family Medicine)
Tara A. Vu, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Wahidullah Wahidullah, M.D. (Internal Medicine)
Russell H. Wheatley, D.O. (Family Medicine)
Donald C. Wheeler, M.D. (Radiology)
Ellen A. Weiss, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Sawar C. Young-Tripp, M.D. (Family Medicine)
Alden P. Zwerling, M.D. (Family Medicine)