Ada County Commissioners Select Doctor Ryan Cole

Ada County Commissioners voted today 2-1 for Doctor Ryan Cole to become the newest member of Central District Health.

The story was reported first by the Idaho Statesman, who called Doctor Cole's selection controversial. Doctor Cole has been an outspoken critic of the state and federal government's handling of the Covid crisis. He has long been a favorite of conservatives throughout the area who've praised him for his work on KIDO Talk Radio.

The vote for Doctor Cole reflects the outcome of the most recent election, which brought Commissioners Beck and Davidson to office. If former Commissioner Diane Lachiondo were still in office, political experts agree that the board wouldn't have selected Doctor Cole.  

Doctor Cole is the owner of Cole Dynastics in Garden City. He has recently appeared on the Healthmade Radio hosted by Doctor Michael Karlfeldt. Doctor Cole received significant local support from the local mayors of Garden City, Eagle, and Star, who wrote letters advocating for him. Commissioner Beck told the Statesman that if he were sick, he would go to Doctor Cole.  

The other board members must now vote on whether or not Doctor Cole will be on the board. If they do vote for him, he'll serve a five-year term. His appointment will give Central District a different perspective than the former board member Doctor Ted Epperly.  

The Ada County Commissioners selected Cole over Dr. Stanely Moss and Doctor Sky Blue. The selection was Doctor featured several political groups from the area sending emails and lobbying support for their candidate. Central District is a nonpartisan group.  

The board has come under fire last year during the Covid shutdowns and mask mandates. We'll continue to monitor the situation to see how the board reacts if the Covid rates continue to rise in our area.