Dr. Ian Hoffman appointed new County Health Officer, gives first update to Board of Supervisors

HUMBOLDT COUNTY, Calif. (KIEM) — Humboldt County officially has a new health officer, Dr. Ian Hoffman. He was confirmed by the Board of Supervisors Tuesday morning.

Hoffman began the day Tuesday by thanking everyone in Humboldt County for trusting him with the new position. He emphasized the importance, and also challenges, of taking on the role during a pandemic.

Hoffman has a medical degree and masters of public health from Rutgers University. He has previously worked in Portland, Oregon, the Bay Area, and also at the Open Door Clinic in Arcata.

In addition to being appointed, Dr. Hoffman also gave his first update to the board on the latest development in Covid-19 cases here on the North Coast.

“The projected time to go from 1,000 to 2,000 is just over a month from now. If that sounds shocking, it should sound shocking because 10 months it took us to get here and potentially only a little over 1 month to get double that,” Hoffman says.

Hoffman replaces Dr. Teresa Frankovich who stepped down from the role last week.