Virus Watch Podcasts

The following is a recording of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

Jefferson County Public Health’s COVID-19 weekly reports and the transmission risk dial were replaced with state data, yesterday, April 3. Jefferson County Public Health’s Communicable Disease Team will continue to post information about COVID-19 on their website, however that information will now come solely from the Washington State Department of Health. The state’s information will be embedded onto the county’s website here. Residents may report their positive home tests results to the state directly via an online portal here.

Jefferson County Public Health reports the two-week COVID-19 case rate is 134 cases per 100,000 people. Jefferson County Public Health estimates that 1 in 20 COVID-19 cases in Jefferson County were reported to public health last week. No one is currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in Jefferson County. There were no new deaths this week, so the total number of those who have died due to COVID-19 is 37 in Jefferson County.

In Clallam County the case rate is 80 per hundred thousand, and the case ascertainment is also 1 in 20. Two patients are currently hospitalized, and no new deaths to report, so the total number of those who have died due to COVID-19 in Clallam County stands at 166.

Dr. Allison Berry spoke to the Jefferson Board of County Commissioners yesterday and discussed the wind-down of emergency declarations across the country, the state, and Jefferson and Clallam Counties. She said that we are still seeing a downward trend in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths due to COVID-19 nationally, in Washington State, and locally. It is too soon to tell, she said, if we are seeing a seasonal fall off in cases. As we are fully in the endemic phase of the pandemic, she stressed that COVID-19 is here to stay, and time will tell if we have seasonal surges, as we have with the flu.

The following is a recording of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. Also Willie Bence, Director of Emergency Management, gave a report. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

Dr. Berry said that news of transmission and disease from COVID-19 is “relatively good,” and on the national level, cases, hospitalizations and deaths are on a downtrend this week. We are down to 334 deaths per day nationwide due to COVID-19, but for reference, she added that number is about three times the death rate of a severe FLU season. Jefferson County Public Health reports the two-week COVID-19 case rate is 221 per 100,000 people, still in the high category. 32 new cases were added in the past week, so there have been 7,080 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. There were no deaths this week. No one is currently hospitalized with Covid-19 in Jefferson County. Willie Bence spoke about resilience on the Olympic Peninsula in light of the Hood Canal bridge closures planned for this summer,

The following is a recording of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. Also Willie Bence, Director of Emergency Management, gave a report. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

Dr. Berry said that COVID-19 nationally and statewide is downtrending, and yet there are still over 500 deaths per day across the US due to COVID-19. 25,000 people have died in 2023 so far in the US and in 2022, COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death nationally, and the 6th leading cause of death in Jefferson County. Jefferson County Public Health reports that 44 new cases were added in the past week, so there have been 7,099 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. No one is currently hospitalized, Unfortunately, we are reporting one death this week. The individual was in their 60s with multiple chronic conditions and not up to date on COVID-19 immunizations, bringing the total number of those who have died to 35 due to COVID in Jefferson County.

The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

On Tuesday Dr. Allison Berry gave a Public Health Report to the Jefferson Board of County Commissioners. She stressed that the national COVID-19 numbers have fallen and have plateaued, and that could mean a continued downward trend or they could be about to rise again. She said that Jefferson County has very good uptake of the bivalent boosters, roughly 50%, and that is good. However, the most severe cases of the disease are among the elderly and those with co-morbidities who have not received the booster shots. She strongly recommends those most vulnerable among us get the bivalent shot. 

The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

Dr. Allison Berry began: “By and large, the news on the viral front is good.” She continued to explain, while answering questions, that the sudden uptick in reporting of COVID-19 deaths in Clallam County was due to a 6-month backlog of autopsy and toxicology results, computer server hacks, and other things that made it SEEM like there was a sudden uptick in COVID-19 deaths in Clallam County recently. The currently added numbers were added from the past six months. No new deaths were reported in Jefferson County over the past two weeks.

The following is a summary of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting.The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

This morning, Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence submitted a Public Health report to the Jefferson Board of County Commissioners and answered questions. Dr. Berry said that the BB 1.1 variant, which is causing a surge in the US on the east coast, is far less prevalent here, and that the high uptake of the bi-valent booster here in Jefferson County is helping to keep those numbers down. In Jefferson County, the two-week case rate is 246 cases per 100,000 people. 1 person is currently hospitalized, and 43 new cases were added this week for a total of 6,723 cases since the pandemic began. The total number of people lost in Jefferson County to COVID-19 holds steady at 34. Jefferson County Public Health staff estimate that 1 in 10 COVID-19 cases in the county were reported to public health last week. Dr. Berry says that the case ascertainment rate indicates there’s an estimated 430 cases here in Jefferson County currently, and the case rate could be over 2000 per hundred thousand.

Sustained decreases in RSV and Influenza are happening right now. One man in his 70s was lost due to influenza this past week. He had underlying health conditions and was not vaccinated against the flu. Dr. Berry continues to stress that we should all continue with masking, keeping up to date with the COVID-19 vaccine and boosters. The risk of COVID-19 transmission in public, indoor places is still HIGH. At this level, it’s strongly recommended everyone wear a well-fitting, high-quality mask in public, indoor settings. https://www.jeffersoncountypublichealth.org/1466/Case-Information has all the numbers.

There will be two Health Reports in February so, the first Monday, February 6 and the third Monday is Presidents Day, so Tuesday February 21 for that second February report. Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence by emailing [email protected] by Friday February 3 at noon, to be answered the following Monday February 6, at 9:45am on KPTZ during the Jim B. Show hosted by yours truly!

Below is a recording of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News:

Dr. Allison Berry said our current case rate in Jefferson County 280 per 100 thousand. There is one person currently hospitalized due to COVID-19 and there are no new deaths this week. The rest of the numbers will be available later today if you go to https://jeffersoncountypublichealth.org/1429/COVID-19.

On the RSV and Flu front, she said we are starting to see those number downtrend, which is good she says, but it’s too early to see a “proper bump” of cases due to the holidays. Just your weekly reminder: Wear a well-fitting, high-quality mask in public indoor settings, stay home if you are sick, and if you can, get a flu shot and the bivalent COVID-19 booster shot. Submit your Public Health questions to Dr. Allison Berry and Willie Bence by emailing [email protected] by Friday, January 13 at noon, to be answered the following Tuesday, January 17.

The following is a recording of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News.

In Jefferson County, the two-week COVID-19 case rate last week was 451 but is now 398 per 100,000 people. Two people are currently hospitalized. 73 new cases were added this week for a total of 6,536 cases. Dr. Berry said three viruses are still challenging our community, that nationally COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are on the rise, and 400 people are dying from COVID-19 every day across the U.S. Statewide, there is also a rise in cases, but she said in Jefferson County case rates are relatively flat. In Clallam County there IS a rise with 6 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19.

Influenza is being reported at a 33% rate in testing, which is high, and there is a high presentation of cases in hospitals and clinics, but she says they might be seeing a plateau in flu cases. 40 people have died due to influenza in Washington State this season.

In terms of RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), Dr. Berry said we are seeing a plateau and even a drop in RSV cases in the central Puget Sound. This is freeing up some pediatric bed space in the major hospitals there, which is making it possible to transfer more severely ill young patients to children’s hospitals in the I-5 corridor. She feels we could see a downtrend on all three viruses soon, but she said, “It all depends on US!”

“The biggest thing for all three of these is to wear a mask indoors. It does reduce transmission of Covid, RSV, and flu. For flu and Covid, there are highly effective vaccines available that can reduce your likelihood of getting infected with the virus and spreading it to others, and dramatically reduce your risk of getting severely ill. The COVID-19 bivalent boosters are available to anyone 6 months and up, so if it’s been more than 2 months since your kiddoes got their vaccines, we recommend moving forward with the bivalent booster. Flu vaccines are also available for anyone 6 months and older. And last, but not least, staying home when you are sick is really critical.”

Below is a recording of the presentation during the Public Health briefings at this week’s Board of County Commissioners meeting made by Jefferson and Clallam County Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry. The summary below was provided by Jim Burke, producer of KPTZ’s Tuesday’s Local News:
– Pediatric hospitals and pediatric beds are far beyond capacity.
– Wear a mask in any indoor public setting.
– If you are sick, stay home.
– If your children are sick, keep them home.
– Get the flu shot and the Bivalent booster COVID-19 shot, if you can.
– Flu, RSV, and COVID-19 are all surging and we will not turn the corner until probably the end of January. 
– Keep the grandparents safe, and skip Christmas dinner if you need to.