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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Since March 1, I’ve been sending these daily COVID-19 updates (sometimes more than one in a day) to help you have the most accurate and up-to-date information during this unprecedented crisis. It’s been my belief that one of the best things we can do to stay safe is to stay informed, especially considering how rapidly this situation has been evolving. With that said, I have decided to no longer send updates over the weekend, but I will continue to send updates each day during the week. And, if urgent news arises on the weekend, I will be sure to send something out as soon as I can. Thank you again for reading my updates and I hope you find them helpful.
The rest of this e-newsletter is meant to provide you with an update on some of the other issues on which I’ve been working as well as helpful information related to the COVID-19 crisis. You can read previous updates I sent out on an archive page so you can find any information you may have missed. I have been sending updates every day since March 1 (sometimes more than one in a day). Click here to visit the archive page.
As always, I would like to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to contact my office if you have any questions or comments. You can call me at 206-477-1004 or you can reach me by email at jeanne.kohl-welles@kingcounty.gov.
All the best,
Latest numbers from Public Health
Since yesterday’s update, Public Health is reporting 53 new positive cases of COVID-19 in King County (7,360 total) and 2 new COVID-19-related deaths (516 total). So not the zero number of deaths as reported yesterday, but still low.
As of May 13, there were 17,773 confirmed COVID-19 cases statewide and 983 related deaths. These are up 443 cases and 21 deaths from the last reporting (Note: We do not receive the statewide data daily in time to include in our daily enews.)
Detailed information about demographics of those who died from COVID-19 are available on Public Health’s data dashboard. And, interestingly, you can click on your zip code to learn of the number of “positive” cases and fatalities where you reside.
Also, and again, here is an excellent website that offers real-time COVID-19 data in clear formats, broken down by country and state: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries
   
Isolation and quarantine facilities update
Isolation and quarantine are a proven public health practice for reducing the spread of disease.
Forty-one people are currently staying in King County isolation, quarantine and recovery facilities. The number of residents at King County's isolation and quarantine sites is included in regular updates provided by Public Health. No other identifying or personal information will be provided.
Unemployment fraud on the rise
Washington is seeing a rise in fraudulent unemployment claims as victims’ identities are being used to file false claims. In response the state’s Employment Security Department has halted unemployment payments for two days after finding $1.6 million in fraudulent claims amid the economic fallout caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Some individuals who have not filed an unemployment claim have received notification from ESD indicating that a claim as been filed on their behalf. The State is taking this seriously and reviewing its internal processes to identify and prevent these fraudulent claims going forward.
If you believe you are a victim of imposter fraud, please go to www.esd.wa.gov/fraud and report it immediately using the instructions on that page.
Additional steps to take and resources to learn more if you believe your identity has been stolen:
- Go to the FTC identity theft website, identitytheft.gov. This resource has the most current, detailed step by step process for reporting and protecting people from further victimization.
- Request your free credit reports via www.annualcreditreport.com and review them for other fraudulent activities.
- Find additional tips from the Washington State Attorney General at www.atg.wa.gov/recovering-identity-theft-or-fraud.
You can read more about this disturbing development in an article from the Seattle Times by clicking the following link: https://www.seattletimes.com/business/economy/washington-halts-unemployment-payments-for-two-days-after-finding-1-6-million-in-fraudulent-claims-amid-coronavirus-pandemic/?utm_source=referral&utm_medium=mobile-app&utm_campaign=ios
Protecting rights of people with disabilities as face-covering directive goes into effect
The King County directive requiring face coverings be worn in public goes into effect Monday, May 18. Health leaders are asking everyone to keep in mind that face coverings should not be worn by everyone and are committed to ensuring that individuals who are unable to safely wear face coverings are not harassed or discriminated against.
Those who are exempt from wearing a face covering include someone who has a physical disability that makes it difficult to easily wear or remove a face covering; someone who has been advised by a medical professional to not wear one; someone who has trouble breathing or cannot remove a face covering without assistance; or someone who is deaf and uses facial and mouth movements as part of communications.
Approximately 33,000 King County residents have an intellectual or developmental disability that could affect their ability to wear a face covering. You can read more by clicking the following link: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/news/2020/May/15-covid.aspx
Inslee issues further outdoor recreation guidance
Yesterday, Governor Inslee issued guidance clarifying Phase 1 outdoor recreation requirements and set forth outdoor recreation guidance for Phase 2.
This new guidance covers the following activities:
- Staffed outdoor tennis facilities, public and private;
- Guided ATV, paddle sports, horseback riding, and fishing;
- Go-cart tracks, ORV/motocross facilities, and participant-only motorsports; and
- All other activities substantially similar in operation and equally able to meet the requirements mandated by outdoor recreation requirements.
Through the Washington "Safe Start" plan, more businesses and activities will re-open in phases, with adequate safety and health standards in place. Each phase will be at least three weeks.
Additionally, counties with a population of less than 75,000 that have not had a new case of COVID-19 in the past three weeks can apply for a variance to move to Phase 2 of “Safe Start” before other parts of the state. County variance applications will be approved or denied by the secretary of the Department of Health. Eight counties have received the variance.
Today's guidelines build on the original outdoor recreation requirements released on April 27. For counties granted variance to move to Phase 2, additional recreational activities may resume effective May 14.
You can read the full memo on these clarifications by clicking the following link: Outdoor Recreation, Phase 1 Clarifications and Phase 2 Requirements.
Food security update
Food insecurity is a major issue that is being compounded by the economic fallout caused by the coronavirus pandemic. More and more families and individuals are finding it hard to make ends meet and put food on the table. Yesterday, it was reported that more than 500 cars were lined up at Food Lifeline’s free food handout at the Northgate Mall within the first hour it was open.
This week, Washington State Department of Agriculture’s (WSDA) Food Assistance program distributed 1.4 million pounds of food to serve an estimated 171,000 weekly clients. In addition, more than 60 food banks across the state continued to receive support from the Washington National Guard, which helped box more than 3 million pounds of food and assembled nearly 64,000 meals this week.
If you or someone you know is struggling with food security, I encourage you to click here to check out a map identifying free public food resources in King County. It is updated weekly by Public Health – Seattle & King County and the City of Seattle.
Click on the ‘Return to Main Page’ button to see a list view and printable list view.
Long-term care facility (LTCF) update
As of May 9, a total of 3,214 COVID-19 cases (19% of total positive cases) and 587 deaths (61% of total deaths) have been identified as associated with long-term care facilities, including nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and adult family homes across the state. These cases may include residents as well as employees and visitors. We have limited ability to distinguish amongst them.
- These numbers have been identified using several sources of information including interviews with patients, medical record review and cross-matching address information.
- The state cannot say for certain that all these cases were exposed at a LTCF. Many cases visited multiple places during their exposure period, and some individuals may have visited a LTCF after disease onset.
Also, Governor Inslee indicated earlier this week that he would be ordering widespread testing at all skilled nursing facilities across the state. Click the following link for more information: https://q13fox.com/2020/05/13/inslee-to-order-widespread-coronavirus-testing-in-nursing-homes/
Federal CARES Act funding for schools
The Federal CARES Act passed by Congress included a $30.75 billion education stabilization fund. Of that, Washington state received $216.9 million for elementary and secondary schools. School districts will receive $195.2 million of that allocation.
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction has announced how much will go to each school district, based on an existing federal allocation methodology. These funds are considered flexible, which means they may be used for any activity authorized by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, coronavirus response, activities to address the needs of low-income children, purchasing education technology for students, providing mental health services, and activities “necessary to maintain the operation of and continuity of services in local educational agencies and continuing to employ existing staff.”
See the table below to find out how this money will be allocated to districts in King County.
Additional helpful and informative links
Today's moment of levity
I’ve heard from many constituents (and even some of my staff) that one of the things they miss is the ability to go to concerts and music performed live. Whether at a small venue or a big one, music has the ability to bring people together and inspire us. Luckily, many artists are looking for new ways to share music with fans, and there are many at-home concerts that can be streamed from all over the world. Here, Billboard has a running (and updating) list of concerts available for streaming and LiveNation is streaming music through their “Live from Home” program. Take a moment to explore, maybe one of your favorite artists is participating: https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/9335531/coronavirus-quarantine-music-events-online-streams
https://www.livenation.com/
Keep in touch
Thank you again for taking the time to read my update. You can expect these to continue being sent out on a daily basis, sometimes more than one. Feel free to forward them to others who can subscribe by clicking here.
Finally, to prevent these updates from going straight to spam or junk folders, I encourage you to mark this email address as a “safe sender” by adding the email address to your contacts or address book. And be sure to check your spam folder if you think you may have missed an update.
And please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns and, most importantly, be well.
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