Thurston official recommends phase in of in-person learning; 74 COVID-19 cases announced
The Olympian 1/22/2021 Rolf Boone, The Olympian (Olympia, Wash.)
Jan. 21 Thurston County s top health official is recommending a cautious return to classroom-based learning for K-5 and middle school students, and if the county continues to make progress on COVID-19 transmission rates, it will be followed by a recommendation for high school, the county announced Thursday.
County Health Officer Dr. Dimyana Abdelmalek based that recommendation on the county s moderate transmission range for the virus, and the following: Thurston County Public Health and Social Services has the capacity to respond to cases that may occur in schools, identify those who are close contacts in need of quarantine, and investigate instances of COVID-19 transmission in the schools.
Washington Senate Health and Long-term Care committee hears testimony on Health Equity Zones bill Sydney Kurle | Jan 21, 2021
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The Senate Health and Long Term Care committee heard testimony on SB 5052 on Monday. This bill would require the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) to designate health equity zones based on health disparity data. This bill would also ask the DOH to work with community groups to develop projects to address these inequalities.
This bill is modeled after a program in Rhode Island that is run by the state’s department of health. This program uses funding from multiple sources, a combination of state, federal, local, investor and foundation funding, to support neighborhoods and communities in establishing programs to address the social determinants of health. Some of the programs include establishing a community garden to increase access to fresh food and refurbishing old and neglected housing in the community.
Seniors seeking vaccine: ‘It shouldn’t be this difficult’ Alison Grande
When Phase 1B opened on Monday, it meant everyone 65 and older in Washington became eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. According to the Department of Health, there are more than 1.5 million people in the group.
Midge McCauley has been checking with her doctor at the polyclinic since early January, eager to get vaccinated. On Tuesday night she got an email that stated the phone lines would open at 8 a.m. on Wednesday to book vaccine appointments.
McCauley was ready. She even tried calling before 8 a.m. but no one answered.
Washington experts on the hard-won lessons of COVID’s first year
From treating patients to tracking the virus to vaccinations, health workers reflect on what they’ve learned and the challenges ahead.
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Swedish Medical Center health care workers battling the coronavirus outbreak look on from inside the hospital as first responders gathered outside in support of them in Seattle, April 16, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic was Washington state s top story for 2020. (Elaine Thompson/AP)
There’s a lot Dr. Jeff Duchin didn’t expect a year ago. “If I had seen what was coming, I might have considered retiring,” says the health officer with Public Health Seattle & King County, who hasn’t taken a day off since the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed a year and a day ago in nearby Snohomish.
For a Tacoma woman, she now considers herself a "long-hauler" after contracting COVID-19 last year and continues to suffer long-term effects of the virus.