Round 3 of Working Washington Grants, #keepitlocal, and COVID update

King County, Washington sent this bulletin at 12/02/2020 03:27 PM PST

Round 3 of Working Washington Grants opens this week

Gov. Jay Inslee has announced an additional $70 million for business grants. $50 million of this is for Round 3 of the Working Washington Small Business grant program. The rest will fund qualified businesses that applied in earlier rounds of our resiliency grant program.

When applications open early this week, information and a link to apply will be posted on the StartUp Washington website.

King County Executive launches #keepitlocal

While COVID-19 is spreading, we need people to be mindful about socializing and being out and about, but there are still many ways to support local businesses and organizations. You can join our campaign to #keepitlocal by sharing posts and hashtags on social media that feature your business, or businesses and organizations that you support. Learn more and see the toolkit and graphics attached to this email.

COVID updates this week

This is the King County Weekly COVID-19 Update, to share recent information and resources with our many partner jurisdictions, organizations, and agencies. Please share the relevant information with your networks to help keep our customers, residents, and stakeholders informed and safe. We are all in this together—six feet apart!

New information and follow-up guidance about COVID-19 are continually evolving. Here are some websites you should check frequently to help you stay informed:

> State announces smartphone-based exposure notifications

The Washington State Department of Health has made a new tool available to alert smartphone users if they may have been exposed to COVID-19. The tool, called Washington Exposure Notifications or WA Notify, is completely private—it doesn’t track or share who you are or where you go. Learn more at WAnotify.org.

> Public Health-Seattle & King County releases COVID-19 exposure report

Many communities of color in King County, as well as communities in south King County, have had higher rates of COVID-19 since last spring. A new report dives into differences in outbreaks and exposure by race and geography.

The report on where people may have been infected with the novel coronavirus finds that King County’s most commonly reported sources of potential exposure in recent weeks have been in households and in community or social gatherings, including get-togethers with family and friends, house or dinner parties, larger celebrations such as weddings, activities at places of worship, and visits to restaurants and other businesses. This is different from early in the pandemic, when most cases were concentrated in long-term care facilities.

The report is available as a PDF on the King County website. An introduction to the report and a detailed discussion of it are posted on the Public Health Insider blog.

> Highline College testing site is now open

Early testing is important to help prevent COVID-19 from spreading to friends, family, and the community. If you have a sign/symptom of COVID-19 or were exposed to someone with COVID-19, please get tested. King County testing sites are available to anyone who cannot access a COVID-19 test through their regular healthcare provider, regardless of immigration status.

King County now offers free COVID-19 testing in the South Parking Lot of Highline College in Des Moines. The site is open Monday through Saturday from 9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Due to high demand, users are asked to register in advance before going to any King County testing site.

Online registration is available in English. For other languages, or if you have difficulty registering, call the King County COVID-19 Call Center at 206-477-3977 (open daily from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.). If you need an interpreter, please tell us in English what language you need.

A flyer about the Highline College site is available for download in English, Amharic, Arabic, Chuukese, French, Marshallese, Samoan, Somali, Spanish, Swahili, Tongan, and Vietnamese.

> Resources for workers during COVID-19

The economic disruption unleashed by COVID-19 has posed great challenges for workers in our region. Many have been laid off, or the businesses they worked for haven’t survived the pandemic. Those who still have jobs may worry about whether their employers are taking the necessary steps to keep them safe. Others may be experiencing on-the-job harassment due to their ethnicity and mistaken beliefs that a single country is to blame for the pandemic.

There are resources to help workers during these difficult times, and laws to protect your rights in the workplace. Public Health-Seattle & King County recently updated its worker resource page with new frequently-asked questions and a worker graphic that's available in English, Amharic, Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Dari, Japanese, Korean, Marshallese, Oromo, Persian/Farsi, Punjabi, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Filipino/Tagalog, Tigrinya, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese.

> Video: As hospitalizations increase, an update from Dr. Jeff Duchin and Matias Valenzuela

As cases skyrocket and hospitalizations increase, Dr. Jeff Duchin, Health Officer for Public Health-Seattle & King County, and Matias Valenzuela, Equity Director for Public Health, shared updates on COVID-19 spread, reviewed what the public needs to do to turn this trend around, and discussed new data that shows where people most frequently report being exposed to COVID-19 (see Public Health-Seattle & King County releases COVID-19 exposure report, above).

> Free drive-through flu vaccine clinics in Federal Way on 12/6 and 12/13

It’s not too late to get your flu shot! Protect yourself and your loved ones at free drive-thru vaccine clinics. No insurance, proof of residency, or appointment are required. Drive-through clinics will be open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Dec. 6 and 13 at the Aquatic Center (650 SW Campus Drive) in Federal Way.

FluMist® nasal spray will be available for people aged 2-49, and flu shots will be available for all ages. High-dose vaccine will not be available. Please wear short sleeves and make sure everyone in your car over age 2 wears a mask. Please stay home if sick. Learn more, including where else to get a flu shot (information is available on the website in Amharic, Arabic, Chinese-Simplified & Traditional, Dari, English, Khmer, Korean, Marshallese, Russian, Samoan, Somali, Spanish, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese).

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Contact the King County Small Business Task Force
►Visit the website
►Send email: business.outreach@kingcounty.gov
►Or call: Hugo Garcia, Economic Development Program Manager, 206-263-2821