Covid-19 update

One more case of covid-19 was reported this week according to the Washington Department of Health, bringing the cumulative total in Wahkiakum County to 640. The number of hospitalizations and deaths attributed to the virus stands at 50 and 11, respectively.

Disclaimer: With the easy accessibility of at home tests, the actual number of active covid-19 cases and actual cumulative numbers in the county are hard to know.

While 70.6 percent of the population in Washington state has received the primary series of the vaccine, only 53.2 percent of the population in Wahkiakum County has had the primary series, and according to WA DOH, 33.3 percent of the people in the county eligible for the bivalent booster have had it while only 30.8 percent of people eligible in the state have opted to receive it.

“According to a report from the Centers of Disease Control, the bivalent booster is proving very effective against the newest dominant strain of covid-19, XBB.1.5,” Wahkiakum Health and Human Services Director Chris Bischoff said.

He also said that the number of covid-19 cases is trending down, and that test positivity, hospitalizations, and deaths associated with covid-19 are trending down as well.

“Trending down is good news, but they are all still higher than we would like,” Bischoff added.

The primary series of the Pfizer vaccine and the Pfizer bivalent booster, including a version for juveniles, are available at the vaccine clinic offered by Wahkiakum Health and Human Services.

The clinic is held on Mondays and Wednesdays, from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 1:30-3 p.m. Call 360-849-4041 for more information.

The health department’s vaccine clinics are held at their Elochoman Valley Campus, at 42 Elochoman Valley Road.

According to Bischoff, the waiting room/check-in area for the clinic is in the first building that people see when they turn into the south driveway, called Building 1. Parking is to the right. The entrance is at the northeast corner of the building. People will be greeted and given the forms they need to fill out for their visit.

The primary series of the Moderna vaccine and the new Moderna bivalent booster are available at the Cathlamet Pharmacy by appointment, between the hours of 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. and 2-5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Call 360-795-3691 for more information or to make an appointment.

Flu shots are available at the pharmacy by appointment. The flu shot and the booster can be given at the same time. WHHS is offering both the high dose and regular adult flu shots and the juvenile flu shots during their clinics.

“We still have the high dose and regular flu shot available and it is not too late to get that,” Bischoff said.