Two more Clallam County residents and one Jefferson County resident died from COVID-19, raising the total on the North Olympic Peninsula to 75 since the pandemic began.
The three deaths reported Wednesday raise the total number due to COVID-19 in Clallam County to 58 and in Jefferson County to 17.
One of the two deaths in Clallam County was a woman in her 90s who was fully vaccinated, but her immune system was unable to fully respond to the vaccine, said Dr. Allison Berry, health officer for Clallam and Jefferson counties. The woman was a resident at a long-term care facility that recently had an outbreak of COVID-19, Berry said.
The other was a woman in her 70s who was unvaccinated and not a long-term care resident, Berry said.
The death in Jefferson County was a man in his 90s who was fully vaccinated and a resident of a long-term care facility. He was infected during an outbreak that has since resolved, Berry said.
“The consequences of those outbreaks can be long-lasting, so this death is consistent with that,” Berry said.
“It is painful to see these things still happen.
“I’m hopeful that we will see less of this, since staff members of these facilities are now required to be vaccinated, and I think that will make a very big difference in reducing transmission of the infection in these places.”
Additional cases
Clallam County added 29 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, raising its total to 4,712 since the pandemic began, according to county public health data.
Clallam County recorded a case rate of 399 per 100,000 population for the past two weeks as of Wednesday, county data said.
On Wednesday, Jefferson County added seven new cases of COVID-19, raising its total to 1,087 since the pandemic began, according to county public health data.
Jefferson County’s case rate, recorded weekly, was reported at 156.74 per 100,000 for the two weeks prior as of Oct. 13, according to county health data.
Bringing the case rates down community-wide will help limit the potential for outbreaks in long-term care facilities, jails and schools, as less virus transmission circulates around those populations, Berry said.
“As long as we have high rates of transmission in our community, our long-term care facilities will be at risk,” Berry said. “We still allow for visitation indoors in long-term care facilities — for the mental health of the residents — and that can always bring COVID-19 into these spaces.
“We will remain vigilant and continue to assist these facilities with infection prevention, but the biggest thing we can do as a community to protect these residents is to reduce transmission in the community as a whole.”
Virus transmission across the region is showing “early signs of slowing,” Berry said.
While continuing to urge all residents 12 and older to get vaccinated for COVID-19, Berry also stressed that continuing to wear face masks around others — especially when their vaccination status is unknown — is an effective way to slow transmission.
“Wearing a mask does make a huge difference,” she said. “It’s a small sacrifice for the community.”
On Wednesday, the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Moderna’s and Johnson & Johnson’s vaccines for boosters for high-risk people such as those ages 65 and older, as well as “mix and matching” boosters, meaning someone can choose a different vaccine among the three manufacturers than the one they originally received for their booster dose.
The Moderna booster clinic scheduled for Saturday in Port Angeles filled by the end of the day Wednesday with more than 800 residents signing up, according to a press release from Clallam County Emergency Management.
Officials in Clallam are working to schedule another Moderna vaccination event on Oct. 30, if possible, with more information and how to sign up being announced soon, the press release said.
Jefferson County personnel also are planning for Moderna vaccination events. However, Pfizer was more commonly used in the county earlier in the pandemic response, so officials have a booster clinic using Pfizer’s vaccine scheduled for Saturday at Quilcene School District.
Jefferson residents can sign up for the Quilcene clinic at co.jefferson.wa.us/1429/COVID-19.
According to the latest data from the state Department of Health, 79.9 percent of the population 12 and older in Jefferson County have started vaccinations, with 76.3 percent fully vaccinated. Of the entire population, 73.5 percent have begun vaccination and 70.2 percent are fully vaccinated, according to the state’s dashboard.
In Clallam County, 73.5 percent of the population 12 and older have started vaccinations, with 68.7 percent fully vaccinated. Of the total population, 65.3 percent have begun vaccinations, with 61 percent fully vaccinated, according to the state’s dashboard.
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Jefferson County reporter Zach Jablonski can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 5, or at zjablonski@peninsuladailynews.com.
