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This weekly newsletter provides summarized content on COVID-19 vaccine related topics. This broad level of information is tailored towards health care professionals, partners, and the general public.
WASHINGTON COVID-19 VACCINATION STATUS: PHASE 1B TIER 3 & 4
 Click to view the vaccine phase infographic
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EVERYONE ELIGIBLE FOR COVID VACCINE STARTING APRIL 15: A STATEMENT FROM SECRETARY OF HEALTH UMAIR A SHAH
Vaccine is the tool we need to bring the COVID-19 pandemic to an end. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is pleased everyone age 16 and older will be eligible for vaccine starting April 15, which also marks the four-month anniversary of vaccine rollout in Washington.
The state’s phased eligibility approach has helped ensure those most vulnerable were the first to be vaccinated. Thanks to increasing vaccine supply from the federal government and hard work from our providers across the state to get shots in arms, we are able to expand eligibility sooner than anyone initially thought. As we work to get the community vaccinated, individuals still need to wear a face covering, get tested if they feel sick, practice physical distancing, and properly wash their hands. These continued efforts will help us further protect our community and put the pandemic behind us.
You can read this statement in English or in Spanish on the DOH website.
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VACCINE DISTRIBUTION UPDATE
The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) continues to make progress with our COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration efforts.
As of March 29, more than 3,325,998 doses of vaccine have been given across the state, which is 83% of the 4,006,330 doses that have been delivered to our providers and long-term care programs. Washington is currently averaging 55,894 vaccine doses given each day. This information can be found on the DOH data dashboard under the vaccines tab, which is updated three times per week.
On Wednesday, Washington entered Phase 1B tiers 3 and 4 of the state’s COVID-19 vaccine timeline. This advancement opened eligibility to about 2 million people, including people 16 years or older with two or more co-morbidities or underlying conditions, people age 60 and older, people, staff and volunteers in certain congregate living settings, and high-risk critical workers in certain congregate settings. For a detailed list of who is eligible, please refer to DOH’s vaccine allocation and prioritization guidance document.
Phase Finder, the state’s online vaccine eligibility tool, is no longer needed to verify vaccine eligibility. Eligibility and vaccine location information can be found on Vaccine Locator. Those who need help can call the COVID-19 Information Hotline at 1-800-525-0127, then press #. Language assistance is available.
Read the full news release in English or in Spanish for more information about recent news on vaccine effectiveness and vaccine allocation.
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STATE'S ONLINE ELIGIBILITY TOOL NO LONGER REQUIRED STARTING MARCH 31
Phase Finder, the state’s online vaccine eligibility tool, will no longer be required to verify COVID-19 vaccine eligibility starting March 31.
That means that people who want a vaccine should check the Department of Health's (DOH) prioritization guidance webpage to see when they are eligible to get vaccinated. Those who are eligible can then use Vaccine Locator to find an appointment. DOH has asked that providers no longer require Phase Finder to schedule an appointment or ask for it when patients arrive for their appointment.
Vaccine Locator is available in 30 languages and will have seven more languages by the end of April. Those who have further questions or need help making an appointment can call the state’s COVID-19 information hotline at 1-800-525-0127, then press #. Language assistance is available.
Read the full news release in English or in Spanish.
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CASES OF COVID-19 VACCINE BREAKTHROUGH CONFIRMED IN WASHINGTON STATE
The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is investigating reports of people in the state who tested positive for COVID-19 more than two weeks after being fully vaccinated. Scientists call these “vaccine breakthrough” cases, which are expected with any vaccine.
Large-scale clinical studies found that COVID-19 vaccines reduced the risk of getting COVID-19 in vaccinated people by up to 95% compared to people that did not receive the vaccine. However, the vaccines are not 100% effective in preventing infection. This means a small percentage of fully vaccinated people can be expected to still get COVID-19. These are identified as breakthrough cases.
Out of one million fully vaccinated individuals in Washington state, epidemiologists report evidence of 102 breakthrough cases since February 1, 2021, which represents .01 percent of vaccinated people in Washington. Breakthrough cases have been identified in 18 counties. The majority of those in Washington state with confirmed vaccine breakthrough experienced only mild symptoms, if any. However, since February 1, eight people with vaccine breakthrough have been hospitalized. DOH is investigating two potential vaccine breakthrough cases where the patients died. Both patients were more than 80 years old and suffered underlying health issues. Further investigation will help to identify patterns among people who have COVID-19 after vaccination, such as if a virus variant may have caused the infection.
Read the full news release in English or in Spanish.
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 CDC's COVID DATA TRACKER UPDATED WITH COUNTY INFORMATION
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a COVID Data Tracker for tracking cases, deaths and trends of COVID-19 in the United States. The tracker now has a county view, allowing people to track COVID-19 information in their community. You can view the tracker on the CDC's web page.
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 THE COVID-19 VACCINE IS FREE TO YOU. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
The Department of Health recently published a blog post where Dr. Christopher Chen of the Health Care Authority answers questions about vaccine cost, what information is expected from people when they go to get vaccinated, and other important information.
Check out the full blog post in English.
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COVID-19 VACCINES TOOLKIT FOR BUSINESSES AND EMPLOYERS
A toolkit is now available for employers interested in helping their staff get vaccinated against COVID-19. In Washington, some people are eligible for the vaccine based on their occupation or risk of COVID-19 exposure at the workplace. Employers play an important role in helping these staff get access to the vaccine. This toolkit outlines strategies in support of hosting a clinic or encouraging vaccination in the community.
Check out the toolkit here.
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DOH UPDATES GUIDANCE FOR A VARIETY OF BUSINESSES
The Department of Health (DOH) has updated a variety of business guidance documents for the week of March 29. Find updated documents and their changes shown below.
Farm and Agricultural Workers Guidance
- Updates to isolation, quarantine or entry testing, and masking and medical monitoring language.
- Additional details about responding to outbreaks.
Farm and Agricultural Workers Outbreak Line List
Long-Term Care Facilities (LTCF) Visitor Log and Visitor Announcement Poster
- Updates to the Visitor Log to provide more information and tools. The current version is one of three tools in the new document: Screening Tool, Visitors Log example, and Letter to Visitors.
- Visitor Announcement Poster has additional language about vaccination because of updated LTCF Safe Start Guidance.
Food Workers and Establishments
- Phase 3 information added.
- Clarifications added to outdoor farmer's market and concession stands sections to align with Gov. Inslee's Roadmap to Recovery requirements.
Homeless Shelters
- Overall update as previous document was from March 2020.
- Expanded information on screening, distancing, ventilation, and PPE.
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 COVID-19 VACCINE SOCIAL MEDIA AVAILABLE AS PARTNER TOOLKIT
All of the Department of Health's (DOH) COVID-19 vaccine organic social media is available in our Partner Toolkit on the state's COVID-19 Response web site under “Social Media Graphics and Copy.” Topics cover vaccine questions and answers, featured quotes from experts, and education about COVID-19 vaccines. All materials are offered in English and Spanish, with some translated in up to 36 different languages. People can also access DOH's other paid social media ads, banners, print ads, videos, and more for the entire COVID-19 response.
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QUICK COVID-19 VACCINE COMPARISON CHART NOW AVAILABLE FOR HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS
Now that there are three vaccines available for COVID-19, it can be challenging to keep all the details for the different vaccines straight. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently posted a new COVID-19 vaccine quick comparison chart for health care providers. The document is a 2 page reference table providing basic information on the proper vaccine storage, preparation, and administration of the current U.S. authorized COVID-19 vaccines. This chart is well organized and has multiple hyperlinks for the different vaccines. This is a great tool to have for COVID-19 vaccination efforts.
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"NEUTRALIZING ANTIBODIES AGAINST SARS-CoV-2 VARIANTS AFTER INFECTION AND VACCINATION" PUBLISHED IN JAMA
The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published an article in their March 19 issue called Neutralizing Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 Variants after Infection and Vaccination. A portion of the article appears below.
Serum neutralizing antibodies rapidly appear after SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination and are maintained for several months. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants has raised concerns about the breadth of neutralizing-antibody responses. We compared the neutralizing-antibody response to 4 variants in infected and vaccinated individuals to determine how mutations within the spike protein are associated with virus neutralization....
...This study found neutralizing activity of infection- and vaccine-elicited antibodies against 4 SARS-CoV-2 variants, including B.1, B.1.1.7, and N501Y. Because neutralization studies measure the ability of antibodies to block virus infection, these results suggest that infection- and vaccine-induced immunity may be retained against the B.1.1.7 variant. As additional variants emerge, neutralizing-antibody responses after infection and vaccination should be monitored.
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Question: Can I get an antibody test to see if I am immune after completing my COVID-19 Vaccination Series?
Answer: The Department of Health regularly gets this question from people who are recently vaccinated. According to guidance from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), antibody testing is not currently recommended to check for immunity to SARS-CoV-2. Specifically, there hasn't been enough data to identify what what results would confer immunity.
Although there are several antibody tests currently authorized under Emergency Use Authorization, they are not authorized specifically for to determine an immune response in vaccinated people.
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WEBINAR: COVID-19 VACCINE PROVIDER OPEN DOOR SESSION
The Department of Health vaccine management team hosts bi-monthly COVID-19 provider open door sessions. This is a great opportunity for vaccine providers to ask questions. The next session will cover the vaccine compliance process and will be on:
12:00pm - 1:00pm
Thursday, April 8, 2021
Click here to join the MS Teams meeting
Or call in (audio only)
+1 564-999-2000,,716052430#
Phone Conference ID: 716 052 430#
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 RECORDING: CDC WEBINAR ON VACCINE SAFETY AND ADDRESSING PATIENT QUESTIONS
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently hosted a Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) webinar on COVID-19 vaccine safety and addressing patient questions. The webinar recording is available on the CDC website and provides continuing education credit opportunities.
View the training web page here.
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RECORDING: COVID-19 WEBINAR SERIES: PREVENTING VACCINE ADMINISTRATION ERRORS
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently hosted a webinar on COVID-19 vaccine administration. The training highlighted best practices for COVID-19 vaccine administration, addressed recent COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, and provided resources for improved team performance. The training is available for continuing education credit through 2023 as part of the CDC's TCEO training website.
Read more information about the training here.
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RECORDING: COVID-19 WEBINAR SERIES: GETTING SHOTS IN ARMS, A PRIMER ON STORING AND TRANSPORTING VACCINES
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently hosted a training for health care providers can employ best practices to store and transport vaccines. The training is available for continuing education credit through 2023 as part of the CDC's TCEO training website.
Read more about the training here, including CE information and speaker notes.
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FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC
- Washington gets a limited supply of vaccine and we don’t yet have enough for everyone. Want to know more about how we allocate doses across the state? Visit our vaccine distribution webpage for the latest information.
- The CDC's After Getting the Vaccine page shares what you can expect after getting vaccinated, including common side effects.
FOR INDUSTRY
FOR HEALTH PARTNERS
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This newsletter summarizes content from the week of March 28, 2021 and was sent out on April 2, 2021. |
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