Tag Archives: COVID-19 Vaccine

News

Statewide Pandemic Relief Fund Sets $30M Goal for Vaccine Equity

by Ben Adlin

A statewide partnership of public officials and private groups on Monday, Feb. 15, announced plans to put $30 million toward a new equity initiative intended to boost COVID-19 vaccination rates among Black, Brown, Indigeneous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities and other groups disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

“The goal on this initiative is to raise $15 million to match government dollars around vaccine outreach and education,” said Lilliane Ballesteros, executive director of the Latino Community Fund of Washington. “Now is the time to mobilize our collective resources quickly to those in need.”

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News

As Inslee Allows More Counties to Open, King County’s Public Health Officer Warns of ‘Serious Storm on the Horizon’

by Carolyn Bick

Cases of COVID-19 in King County and throughout the state of Washington may be going down, but Public Health — Seattle & King County’s Health Officer Dr. Jeff Duchin says that this is just the calm before the “serious storm on the horizon.”

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News

Case Rates Remain Highest in South King County, Two Vaccination Sites Open

by Elizabeth Turnbull

A large wave of COVID-19 cases is expected to arrive in Seattle due to a variant strain of the virus, meanwhile South King County remains the most impacted by the novel coronavirus, county public health officials said in a press conference Friday afternoon. Vaccinations have been distributed at higher rates in north and central King County. In response the county has stepped up efforts to increase the number of vaccination sites for South King County residents in the past week.

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News

Washington Study Showing COVID-19 Is Deadlier for Pregnant Women, Raises Questions About Vaccine Priorities

by Sally James

Pregnant women in Washington state who contracted COVID-19 were 13 times more likely to die from the virus than their peers who were not pregnant, according to a study published last week in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. One study author called the mortality rate “shockingly high.” The study was led by University of Washington researchers.

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Voices

OPINION: Inequitable Vaccinations

by Glenn Nelson 

Count me underwhelmed by Gov. Jay Inslee’s announcement that Washington soon will receive more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. That’s rather like the U.S. Postal Service  (USPS) announcing it has reached an additional distribution agreement with Amazon. Both entities, the State and the USPS, were having a hard enough time delivering what they already had.

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News

King County Public Health Officer Notes ‘Mixed Message’ on Reopening, Spread of New Coronavirus Variant

by Andrew Engelson

In an online press conference Friday, Jan. 29, Jeff Duchin, MD, the health officer for Public Health —  Seattle & King County said that while COVID-19 cases have declined in King County for the past three weeks, the current level of transmission still represents a “serious health threat.” Duchin said he expects that the more contagious and potentially more lethal B 1.1.7. variant, already discovered in Snohomish County, will be “likely be found in King County any day now.” Reacting to Gov. Inslee’s announcement this week that King County will be allowed to return to Phase 2 of Washington’s Road to Recovery Plan, Duchin acknowledged, “The mixed messaging is very challenging. We’re currently in a decline. And people are feeling good. But I need to remind everyone that we’re still at a high level even though we’ve come down.”

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News

Seattle ‘Hazard Pay’ Bonus for Grocery Workers Likely to Begin Next Week

by Ben Adlin

Thousands of frontline workers at large grocery stores in Seattle will soon see a $4-per-hour raise under emergency hazard-pay legislation passed Monday, Jan. 25, by the City Council. Labor leaders hope the new rule will inspire similar action around Puget Sound, including neighboring Burien and unincorporated King County.

The increase requires Seattle grocery businesses with 500 or more total employees to raise workers’ hourly wages by $4 in recognition of the higher risk of contracting COVID-19 involved in their work. The measure does not apply to small businesses, convenience stores, or farmers markets. 

The City Council approved the bill on an 8–0 vote, allowing it to take effect as soon as the mayor signs it. That’s expected to happen next Wednesday, Feb. 3, Durkan’s staff told the Emerald in an email.

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News

Banking on Vaccine, Hope, in the Face of a More Contagious Virus Variant, Inslee Allows King County to Relax COVID Restrictions

by Carolyn Bick

Despite the fact that a new, more contagious and potentially deadlier variant of the novel coronavirus has already been detected in the state, Gov. Jay Inslee announced at a press conference on Thursday, Jan. 28 that he would bank on the State’s ability to administer enough vaccines to stay ahead of the spread — despite the fact that the new variant is expected to become the dominant form of the virus by March — and open up King County and a few other counties in two of the state’s eight regions to Phase 2.

King County and the other counties in these two regions will be able to move into Phase 2 on Monday, Feb. 1. Moving into Phase 2 means that these counties’ restaurants will now be able to have indoor dining and their fitness facilities will once again be permitted to open. Indoor activities have been shown to increase the risk of catching and spreading the novel coronavirus. 

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News

Good Vaccine News Overshadowed by Emergence of More Contagious, Possibly Deadlier COVID Variant in State

by Carolyn Bick

Though Washington State will be getting more doses of both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, as well as specialized syringes that will be able to coax out one extra dose from every vial of Pfizer vaccine, the good news Gov. Jay Inslee shared during his press conference on Tuesday, Jan. 26 was somewhat overshadowed by the arrival of the significantly more contagious novel coronavirus variant in the state, the discovery of which was officially announced this past weekend in a Department of Health press release.

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News

Seattle Set to Vaccinate Older, Vulnerable Adults in Supportive Housing in Next Round of Mobile Vaccination Effort

by Carolyn Bick

Seattle’s older adults living in supportive housing will be the next in line for vaccinations against the novel coronavirus offered by the City’s mobile vaccine clinics, the Office of the Mayor announced in a press release on Jan. 22. This newest mobile vaccination effort began on Jan. 21 and includes older adults who had formerly experienced homelessness and who now receive wraparound case management services, as well as older, low-income adults living in affordable housing.

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