Snohomish County Council Chair Stephanie Wright and Vice Chair Megan Dunn will be co-hosting a regional remote Town Hall Meeting regarding vaccines and vaccine distribution in Snohomish County on Tuesday, March 2 from 4:30-5:30 p.m.. Panelists will include Dr. Chris Spitters and Shawn Fredrick from the Snohomish Health District, Jason Biermann from Snohomish County Department of Emergency…
COVID-19 coronavirus
Sno-Isle Libraries gradually reopening community libraries to customers
Sno-Isle Libraries said it is gradually reopning community libraries to its customers, with Grab ‘n’ Go service being offered this week at the Brier and Lynnwood libraries. “Library customers tell me every day they appreciate the adaptions we have made, but really need access to our in-building services,” Sno-Isle Libraries Executive Director Lois Langer Thompson…
County COVID-19 briefing: Cases continue to decline, vaccine frustration lingers
Declining COVID cases, but lingering vaccine frustration marked Snohomish County’s latest coronavirus briefing Tuesday. The vaccine pipeline is slowly reopening here. Dr. Chris Spitters, the county’s chief health officer, said during the briefing that the county is getting deliveries that were promised last week and getting this week’s vaccine allotment as well. That means 30,000…
New hours for state COVID-19 information hotline
The Washington State Department of Health said it is optimizing the hours for the state COVID-19 information hotline to better serve the public. As of Feb. 22, the hotline will be open from: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and observed state holidays Hotline specialists can answer…
Washington State Department of Health provides update on COVID-19 vaccine distribution
The Washington State Department of Health said during a media brieding Thursday that it continues to make progress with the state’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration efforts. As of Feb. 15, more than 1,201,120 doses of vaccine have been given across the state, which is nearly 83% of the 1,453,425 doses that have been delivered to…
City of Edmonds hoping to identify vulnerable residents unable to travel to vaccine locations
Starting Thursday, Feb. 18, the City of Edmonds is launching an effort aimed at identifying Edmonds residents unable to travel to obtain their COVID-19 vaccines. City recreation staff has been tasked with answering calls Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to identify Edmonds residents unable to travel to obtain their COVID-19 vaccines. Edmonds…
State health department to host Feb. 18 webinar on COVID-19 vaccine phases
The Washington State Department of Health will host a live webinar Thursday, Feb. 18 to discuss the phasing and rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in state. The webinar, “Understanding WA’s COVID-19 Vaccine Phases,” will feature Umair A. Shah, MD, MPH, Secretary of Health; SheAnne Allen, COVID-19 vaccine director and Dr. Christopher Chen, medical director – Medicaid,…
‘Coping with Grief’ event set for Feb. 18 through Sno-Isle Libraries Issues That Matter ‘Pandemic Pressures’
“Coping with Grief” is the topic of the Thursday, Feb. 18 Sno-Isle Libraries online presentation, part of its Issues That Matter 2021, “Pandemic Pressures: Supporting Community and Family Mental Health.” It will run from 6:30-8 p.m. People of all ages are experiencing grief during the pandemic, and it comes from many sources. Loss of loved…
Free, drive-thru COVID-19 testing in Lynnwood Thursday
With COVID-19 rates remaining at high levels and vaccine roll out ramping up slowly, getting tested for COVID-19 and taking precautions to prevent the spread of the virus remain vital. A free, drive-thru event is scheduled to take place Thursday, Feb. 18 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Homage, 5026 196th St. S.W. in…
DOH expands school testing initiative to encourage more in-person learning
The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) in partnership with the Washington Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction (OSPI) and Health Commons is expanding its COVID-19 testing service for schools and adding voluntary testing options to its toolkit for school districts. This is part of the ongoing effort to expand in-person learning to more…
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COVID weekly briefing: County releases latest numbers on school outbreaks, available vaccine doses
Snow damage to COVID test sites, coronavirus data on school outbreaks and new guidelines on wearing masks are the key takeaways from Snohomish County’s latest COVID briefing Tuesday. The snowstorm damaged tents and equipment at COVID test sites at Funko Field in Everett and the Lynnwood Food Bank, so they were unable to open Tuesday….
State Health Department to focus on second doses of COVID-19 vaccine this week
Appointments to get a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine will be extremely limited in Washington state this week as the Washington Department of Health State focuses on second doses. The Department of Health is still determining exactly how many first doses will be available during the week. For these available first doses, the department said…
Actor Chris Pratt awards $10K grant to Edmonds Food Bank, after Feed Thy Neighbor campaign
Greater Good Charities and actor Chris Pratt awarded nearly $650,000 to 21 nonprofit organizations — including a $10,000 grant to the Edmonds Food Bank — after successful Feed Thy Neighbor initiative to combat food insecurity across the U.S. that has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. “Feed Thy Neighbor was created as a result of…
Winter weather and vaccinations: Snohomish County sites to remain open unless conditions change
Wtih snow in the forecast, the Snohomish County Vaccine Taskforce said Wednesday it plans to keep the county’s mass COVID-19 vaccination sites open. But it is closely monitoring the winter weather and those plans could change. “The latest update indicates that we can expect freezing temperatures, some windy conditions, and chance of snow, though it…
COVID Weekly Report: While numbers continue to decline and vaccinations ramp up, new viral variants could quickly change the game
There is reason for optimism this week in the worldwide battle against the coronavirus as critical metrics continue to go down for the third week in a row. But this is tempered by a stern warning from experts that the emergence of new mutant variants has the potential to wipe out these gains. The COVID…
County making slow but steady progress in vaccination drive; new appointment system coming this week
Snohomish County says it is making slow but steady progress in the drive to vaccinate more people against COVID-19. Now, about one of every 10 residents has received their first vaccine dose. The county says that getting an adequate vaccine supply is still frustrating its efforts and the tens of thousands of people who want…
Snohomish County Vaccine Taskforce opens new indoor mass vaccination site
A new indoor mass vaccination site opened at the Boeing Everett Activity Center Wednesday. It is the first indoor site to open as part of the Snohomish County Vaccine Taskforce efforts. Like the drive-thru locations, the site — at 6400 36th Ave. W. in Everett — is by appointment only for those who are eligible…
COVID Weekly Report for Feb. 2, 2021: Entering second year of pandemic, it’s vaccines vs. variants in a worldwide race against time
Snohomish County vaccination site at Paine Field. (Photo courtesy Snohomish Health District) While the U.S. and other nations make steady but incremental progress in ironing out the many startup wrinkles bedeviling efforts to get vaccine to an increasingly anxious and frustrated public, the coronavirus is not sitting still. Capitalizing on its short generation time and…
‘We have the capacity, we don’t have the vaccine’: County officials recognize frustration of those seeking COVID shots
There is one message in Snohomish County’s latest COVID briefing update Tuesday: “We have the capacity to administer 50,000 shots a week, but we don’t have the vaccine.” Reporters heard, “we don’t have the vaccine,” time after time during the briefing from Chief Health Officer Dr. Chris Spitters and Department of Emergency Management Director Jason Biermann….
CoronaCoaster local video series now live; volunteers welcome for new episodes
The first five episodes of CoronaCoaster — a community video project aimed at capturing local experiences of living through the ups and downs of the coronavirus pandemic — are now live for public viewing. CoronaCoaster randomly pairs intergenerational teams of two “co-stars” to share their individual stories in 10-minute Zoom episodes. The co-stars decide what…
Snohomish County Vaccine Taskforce opens north county drive-thru site; additional sites under development
A fourth mass vaccination site has opened, just three weeks after the first drive-thru site in the county began operating. Vaccination at the Arlington Municipal Airport began Friday. That site is expected to continue operating as long as doses are available. While exact capacity at the site will vary, hundreds of vaccines can be administered…
Reminder: Deadlline Feb. 2 to apply for third round of Snohomish County small business relief grants
Small businesses in the sectors hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic are being proritized for the third round of relief grants announced by Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers. The Small Business Relief, Recovery, and Resiliency (R3) Grant Program is a key part of the relief and recovery action Snohomish County is taking to help businesses…
State Health Department: COVID-19 data shows encouraging signs as well as reasons for caution
The Washington State Department of Health Friday released the latest statewide situation report on COVID-19. Report findings include: Declining COVID-19 transmission provides an opportunity to get case and hospitalization rates under control before the faster-spreading B.1.1.7 variant takes hold in the state. The best estimate of the reproductive number (how many new people each COVID-19…
Indoor dining to reopen Feb. 1 as Inslee changes metrics for Roadmap to Recovery plan
Starting next Monday, Feb. 1, Snohomish County will be moving into Phase 2 of the state’s Healthy Washington — Roadmap to Recovery plan, with more options for indoor dining, theaters, and indoor sports and fitness. Gov. Jay Insless announced Monday that the recovery plan he unveiled Jan. 6 will be changed in two ways: First, the…
Reminder: Help for anxious kids, parents in next Sno-Isle Libraries Issues That Matter Jan. 30
The second installment of Sno-Isle Libraries’ Issues That Matter series is titled “How to Recognize Anxiety and Depression in Kids” and focuses on the needs of parents and caregivers with children at home. Join Sno-Isle Libraries staff and mental health professionals from 10-11:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 30. The coronavirus pandemic is adding stressors that families couldn’t…