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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
By now you may have likely heard that King County’s application to move into Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan was approved by state regulators.
This means our restaurants and bars can now open at half capacity with limited table sizes, hair and nail salons and barbershops can increase capacity, and retail stores can reopen for in-store purchases at 30% capacity. It also allows additional outdoor recreation and one gathering per week with no more than five people outside of a single household.
However, we must stay aware of the ongoing danger of COVID-19. The virus is still out there and in many parts of our nation, cases are on the upswing. This means we must remain vigilant about wearing masks, staying six feet apart, and washing hands as much as possible. As always, staying home (when feasible) is the safest option.
Governor Inslee, in announcing that King County has advanced to Phase 2, and that Grays Harbor, Mason, Lewis and Island have moved to Phase 3, wrote on his Twitter account, “But know this - I will not hesitate to freeze, or even move counties backward if needed. Help prevent that. Wear a mask. #WearAMaskWA.”
Click this link to find out what can open in each phase: https://coronavirus.wa.gov/what-you-need-know/safe-start/whats-open-each-phase
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). However, I have now transitioned starting today to sending updates on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays unless there are major developments. 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,
COVID-19 updates
THE LATEST NUMBERS AND GRAPHS FROM PUBLIC HEALTH ARE DELAYED. FULL UPDATED NUMBERS AND GRAPHS WILL BE SENT ON MONDAY.
In the meantime, please check out the link below for the data dashboard, which will be updated as soon as the latest numbers are available.
As of yesterday, June 18, 2020, King County had:
94 new cases (8,987 total)
7 deaths (582 total)
Detailed information about demographics of those who died from COVID-19, as well as on rates of hospitalization, is 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
Lastly, here is an updated list of places open for COVID-19 testing: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/news/2020/May/~/media/depts/health/communicable-diseases/documents/C19/community-health-center-testing-locations.ashx
Public Health expands testing in south King County and resumes its SCAN Coronavirus study
The Seattle Times reports that Public Health - Seattle & King County opened three ongoing and free COVID-19 test sites in south King County. The sites are located at Sea Mar Community Health Centers at South Park, HealthPoint Auburn and at UW Mobile Clinic at Auburn City Adventist Church. This brings the total number of free testing sites in south Seattle and south King County to ten, with 18 total free testing sites overall in King County.
Also last week, Public Health - Seattle & King County announced that its Greater Seattle Coronavirus Assessment Network (SCAN) study is resuming. "The study will continue to inform King County’s public health response by helping understand where the virus exists in our region," a statement said, "and how it is spreading."
Today is Juneteenth
 
On June 19, 1865, Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas, with the news that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state were freed by executive decree. This day came to be known as “Juneteenth,” by the newly freed people in Texas. Do you know the story of Juneteenth? Learn more at the National Museum of African American History and Culture:
Essay on the Historical Legacy of Juneteenth
Juneteenth: A Celebration of Resilience
View the video from this morning’s discussion, hosted by the Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) and five other Black museums across the country. It includes an exploration of the meaning and relevance of “Freedom,” “Justice” and “Democracy” in African American life, and includes educational content and artistic performances.
Presenters include Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; Dr. Carla Hayden, 14th Librarian of Congress; and Johnnetta Betsch Cole, Ph.D., a noted educator, author, speaker and consultant on diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion in educational institutions.
King County Executive Dow Constantine sent out a notice to King County employees on the history and importance of Juneteenth and said, “Juneteenth 2020 is a time for hope, marked by historic demonstrations and calls for racial justice in King County and across the United States, indeed around the world. It is time to turn these calls into action, to harness the passion and momentum, to stand together and truly live our We are Racially Just value, to grasp this moment in our history and build a future free of racism, violence, and hate.”
My County Council colleague, Rod Dembowski, is introducing legislation to make Juneteenth an official King County holiday. I will proudly be a co-sponsor.
King County Board of Health declares racism as a public health crisis
The Board of Health, of which I’m a member, declared racism a public health crisis at its meeting yesterday. Though well documented for decades, the pandemic has put a spotlight on the extreme toll racism has taken on the health of people of color.
As Board of Health Chair and my Council colleague Joe McDermott said, “The strain of racism that Black, indigenous and other people of color in our community live with every day leads to differences in health and well-being, opportunities for employment, education, and housing, and truly is a public health crisis.”
See coverage of the meeting on KIRO 7 here.
DACA recipients celebrate ruling by U.S. Supreme Court
As explained in this article in The Seattle Times, Washington State will benefit from yesterday’s 5-4 Supreme Court ruling, which allows immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to live and work here legally. The DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program was “ended” three years ago by President Trump, but the Court yesterday ruled that the President - - as The Seattle Times article states, “did not provide a reasoned explanation” when he announced the end of the program.
As The Times article explains, “Microsoft, which has 62 DACA recipients on staff, was also a plaintiff in one of the cases [challenging the ending of the DACA program].” Here at King County, we have several DACA recipients on staff, including Graciela Nunez, who was profiled in the article, and is a policy aide to King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay.
Public Health sets up COVID testing and mental health services at CHOP
Another Seattle Times article describes outreach by Public Health - Seattle & King County to provide services at The Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP). “Public Health - Seattle & King County has arranged for mobile testing for the novel coronavirus at the Capitol Hill Organized Protest, and have established mental and behavioral health resources and volunteers at the northwest corner of Cal Anderson Park.”
My County Council colleague, Councilmember Girmay Zahilay tweeted the following:
“We asked Public Health to provide critical services at CHAZ/CHOP and they delivered! @KCPubHealth has now arranged mobile COVID testing at the NW corner of Cal Anderson. They also now have mental and behavioral health resources and volunteers there. Thank you @KCPubHealth!”
Additional helpful and informative links
Today's moment of inspiration
According to an article by Reuters, a social enterprise company in Uganda has started shredding and melting plastic waste and shaping it into Coronavirus face shields. The company – run by Peter Okwoko and his colleague Paige Balcom – “had been turning collected plastic waste into building materials such as roofing tiles and pavers since last year,” and shifted gears upon receiving an urgent request from a doctor at Gulu regional hospital. They have produced over 1,000 shields to date. Read the details here.
Keep in touch
Thank you again for taking the time to read my update. You can expect these to continue being sent out now three times a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays – but sometimes more than once in a given day. And, if the need arises, I will send them out on a Tuesday or Thursday as well. 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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