The North Olympic Peninsula is headed toward meeting requirements for lifting proof-of-vaccination mandates, said Dr. Allison Berry, health officer for Clallam and Jefferson counties.
“We are still on track to hit those targets, and it’s possible we may hit them early,” Berry said Thursday.
A date of March 11 is set for lifting a mandate for proof of vaccination for those who want to eat and drink indoors. The state plans to lift its masking mandate on March 21.
Case rates are declining on the Peninsula.
The case rate in Clallam County dropped to 626 per 100,000 population on Thursday from 692 cases per 100,000 on Wednesday. That number was down from Tuesday’s case rate of 732 per 100,000.
Jefferson County’s case rate is updated weekly, not daily. It was 618 per 100,000 population on Feb. 18 and will be updated today.
Case rates are the reflection of cases reported over a two-week period. They are computed using a formula based on 100,000 population for counties that do not have 100,000 people living in them.
Jefferson County on Thursday reported 105 people in isolation with active cases.
Clallam County does not report that metric but does report a daily average over the past two weeks.
On its COVID-19 dashboard, Clallam County said on Thursday the average daily number of cases during the past two weeks is 34. On Wednesday, it was 38. On Tuesday, that number was 40.
Both counties saw increases in individual cases.
Clallam County’s confirmed cases rose by 32 for a total since the pandemic began of 10,652 on Wednesday to 10,684 on Thursday.
Jefferson County’s confirmed cases rose by 10 for a total since the pandemic began of 3,015 on Thursday from 3,005 on Wednesday.
Six people from Clallam County and four from Jefferson County were reported as being in a hospital with the virus on Thursday.
Among the Clallam County residents, three were at Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles, with two in the intensive care unit (ICU), while one was in a hospital outside of the county.
One Jefferson County resident was in the ICU at Jefferson Healthcare hospital in Port Townsend, and three others were in ICUs in hospitals outside the county.
No new deaths were reported in either county Thursday.
Clallam County has reported a total number of deaths since the pandemic began of 101 and Jefferson County has reported 26 since the pandemic began.
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Reporter Ken Park can be reached at kpark@peninsuladailynews.com.
