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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
As you may have heard, Gov. Inslee announced yesterday that as of Monday social gatherings in Phase 3 counties will be limited to 10 people, down from 50. King County is in Phase 2, where the limit for social gatherings remains at 5 people. However, 15 counties are currently in Phase 3. The new order also bans live entertainment statewide. And, the Governor warned that if the numbers don’t improve, additional restrictions could be forthcoming. Please see the story below for more information.
Each of us has a critical role in keeping down the numbers of cases, hospitalizations and deaths due to COVID 19. See the item below on the importance of mask-wearing and physical distancing for some helpful resources.
The rest of this e-newsletter includes updates on the COVID-19 crisis and other issues. And you can click here to visit the archive page where you can find all of my previous enews updates.
As always, I would like to hear from you. You can call me at 206-477-1004 or you can reach me by email at jeanne.kohl-welles@kingcounty.gov.
All the best and I hope you are staying safe.
COVID-19 UPDATES
Not good news today. Since yesterday’s update, Public Health – Seattle & King County is reporting 215 new positive cases of COVID-19 (12,807 total) and 3 new COVID-19-related deaths (624 total) as of this afternoon. The number of new hospitalizations is 40 (1,790 to date). Of the 9,531 cases in which race and ethnicity information is available, 3,860 of those are white and 5,671 are Black, Indigenous and People of Color. I must say, all of today’s results are alarming.
Yesterday, Public Health reported 239 new positive cases of COVID-19 (12,592 total) and 1 new COVID-19-related death (621 total). The number of new hospitalizations was 19 (1,750 total).
Statewide, as of July 15th, the state’s total confirmed cases are 44,315 with 1,427 deaths, and total hospitalizations of 4,944.
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 where you can click on your zip code for the number of “positive” cases and fatalities where you reside.
And, see newly added data dashboards track COVID- 19 on homelessness data, updated weekly on Thursdays, and syndromic surveillance data, detailing emergency department visits and hospitalizations, updated weekly on Wednesdays.
Real-time COVID-19 data broken down by country and state: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries
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
   
COVID UPDATES
New restrictions to slow spread of COVID-19 start Monday, July 20th
As I mention above, Gov. Inslee announced yesterday that social gatherings in Phase 3 counties will be limited to 10 people, down from 50, as of Monday, July 20th. King, Pierce and Snohomish counties are still in Phase 2, where the limit for social gatherings remains at 5 people.
The announcement came after the state saw the highest single day increase in cases since the pandemic began in January. On Thursday, the state Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,292 new cases out of the 19,381 cumulative cases statewide.
The seven-day average of new cases per day, from June 26 to July 2, was 629 cases per day. This is also the highest since the pandemic began.
“The steps are necessary to slow down the spread of COVID-19. The unfortunate truth is that we can’t let our guard down, even as we engage in more activities,” Inslee said yesterday. “As we inch closer to the fall, we are already on an unsustainable path in the spread of this virus. We have to change to save lives and to avoid turning the dial back further on the activities we enjoy.”
The new restrictions apply only to social gatherings, not business operations operating legally under the Safe Start guidance. Funerals, weddings and religious activities are also exempt. The governor noted that if Washingtonians continue failing to adhere to mask-wearing and social distancing, today’s announcement may be a forerunner to more rollbacks.
Additionally, Governor Inslee and Sec. of Health John Wiesman announced a prohibition on all live entertainment, indoor or outdoor, statewide. This includes drive-in concerts, comedy clubs and music in restaurants.
See this story from today’s Seattle Times: Washington state’s 10-person limit on gatherings nixes drive-in concerts, but drive-in movies are still allowed.
Masks can make the difference in fight against COVID-19; individual behavior is critical to controlling pandemic
As Public Health – Seattle & King County reports, “Cases have begun to increase quickly in King County with an estimated effective reproductive number solidly above 1 for the first time since late March.”
Public Health has continued to emphasize the importance of individual behavior in containing this pandemic. The actions we each take make an enormous difference during this public health crisis. Right now it is crucial that we each mask-up and remain physically distant from people outside our own households.
Public Health reports here on a recent survey - undertaken by the greater Seattle Coronavirus Assessment Network (SCAN) - about mask and physical distancing habits in King County. Here is one key finding from the survey:
“Through June 30, SCAN survey respondents have reported increased rates of mask usage across all age groups. However, as the percentage of people who say they always wear face masks has gone up, the percentage who say they always try to stay six feet away from people who do not live with them has gone down.
This is particularly evident among those between the ages of 20 and 59. Approximately half of these survey participants report that they always both use a face mask and adhere to physical distancing recommendations. One in seven in this group said they only sometimes or never do either. This mirrors the shift of the epidemic into younger people over time.”
As we all know, wearing a mask can sometimes be challenging. A story in Crosscut today explains that even during the 1918 flu pandemic there was resistance to masks, “and mask-wearing was sometimes enforced with fines, arrests, jail time and, in at least one case, gunfire.”
However, according to a recent study published in JAMA, and discussed in this JAMA editorial, the data show clearly that masks help prevent the spread of COVID-19. See also this article in BusinessInsider.com - - the director of the CDC says the virus could be under control in two months if everyone in the United States wears a mask. The article also mentions a modeling program from the University of Washington that projects universal masking could save 45,000 lives by November.
Face covering resources and information:
Deciding how – and whether – to physically reopen schools: It’s about the whole community
As reported in this King5 story, decisions about reopening schools are tied to how well the rest of society is complying with COVID-19 prevention guidelines. Also see this Seattle Times story: If coronavirus transmission levels don’t decrease, King County school buildings should not reopen in fall, report says
The state DOH is working closely with the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to help schools plan to reopen safely. They have issued guidance to school districts – which they are updating regularly – to help plan for safe reopenings. Right now, that guidance includes a requirement for students and staff to wear cloth face coverings, setting up classrooms to maintain six feet of distance between desks, screening students and staff for fever and other COVID-19 symptoms every day.
Along with Public Health — Seattle & King County and the Institute for Disease Modeling (IDM), DOH released a new report called “Schools are not islands: we must mitigate community transmission to open schools.” The report is the result of modeling data that describes the transmission of COVID-19 to determine how it may spread in the future, depending on how effective Washington is at preventing its spread. It then predicts the course of the epidemic under various conditions in our communities and schools.
Some key findings from the report:
- We cannot go back to “normal” within our workplaces and communities and expect to be able to safely reopen school.
- We cannot safely reopen school if community transmission is increasing
- School will look different
Read the full story from DOH here.
RACIAL, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE UPDATES
 Photo by CNN
Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County Announces Day Of Action, National Strike for Black Lives Monday, July 20
A national coalition of labor unions, along with racial and social justice groups, will stage a mass walkout to protest against systemic racism on Monday. According to The Seattle Medium, Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County yesterday announced a day of direct action in solidarity with local and national labor unions that plan a nationwide strike for Black lives on Monday, July 20. Details about online actions will be announced throughout Monday beginning at 8 a.m. PDT on blacklivesseattle.org and BLMSKC’s Facebook page.
Seattle Met reports, “This local strike and protest—organized by Black Minds Matter, East Side for Black Lives, and Defund SPD—seeks racial, economic, and climate justice.”
And, see this article in The Los Angeles Times, Labor unions, activist groups plan nationwide ‘Strike for Black Lives’ on July 20
Social and environmental justice summit Thursday July 30, 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
 Photo by indybay.org
The UW’s College of the Environment, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Office of Sustainability are sponsoring an online summit on the intersection of social and environmental justice.
The purpose is to learn from social and environmental activism, connect with people across University of Washington working in these areas, and engage in a dialogue for change at the intersection of the UW institution and beyond. Please see the link above for more information and to register.
Primary election ballots should arrive in mailboxes in next few days and must be returned or postmarked by August 4th. An online option is also available.
You can register to vote online or by mail until eight days before an election. Registrations done by mail need to be received, not postmarked, by the eight-day deadline, election day on August 4th. The deadline to register for the August 4th primary election is July 27th.
As part of the continued effort to stop the spread of CoVID-19 in our community, King County Elections strongly recommends registering to vote and updating your registration online. You can also access your ballot online when needed for the rest of the year.
King County will have Vote Centers open for those who need assistance or have missed the deadlines, but requests that those who are able to utilize the online tools do so. Those who do come to a Vote Center in person will be required to wear a face covering that covers their nose and mouth.
Please email elections@kingcounty.gov or call 206-296-VOTE (8683) if you need additional assistance. For more information, please see the King County Elections website.
Additional helpful and informative links
Today’s moment of inspiration
Queen Elizabeth knights 100-year-old fundraiser
According to reporting from Reuters and the BBC, Queen Elizabeth knighted Captain Tom Moore recognizing the 100-year-old for lifting Britain’s spirits by raising millions of pounds for health workers.
Buckingham Palace said it was the first time the ceremony had been held in a strictly socially distanced format.
Capt. Sir Tom, who was given the honorary title of colonel on his 100th birthday, had initially set out to raise £1,000 for Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) charities by repeatedly walking an 82ft (25m) loop of his garden. But he eventually raised £32,794,701 from more than one-and-a-half million supporters.
Photo: Getty Images/BBC
Keep in touch
Thank you again for taking the time to read my updates, which I’m sending out on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays - - and sometimes more frequently. Feel free to forward them to others who can subscribe by clicking here.
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And please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns and, most importantly, be safe.
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