CORONAVIRUS: Monday 2/1/2021 roundup

The first stats in two days top tonight’s pandemic roundup:

NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: No update yesterday – we asked why today, and the reply was that they were having technical trouble – “some SQL database issues.” But an update was posted today, and here are the key points of the daily summary from Seattle-King County Public Health:

*77,017 people have tested positive, 367 more than Saturday’s total

*1,264 people have died, unchanged from Saturday’s total

*4,815 people have been hospitalized, 28 more than Saturday’s total

*832,970 people have been tested, 5,787 more than Saturday’s total

One week ago, those totals were 74.727/1,227/4,726/815,985.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.

WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: 103.4 million cases, 2,237,000+ deaths. See the other stats – nation by nation – here.

VACCINATION INDIGNATION: It was a big topic during this morning’s Seattle City Council briefing meeting, when councilmembers go around the table for individual updates. Council President Lorena González said she was deeply concerned that the most vulnerable community members, particularly those who are BIPOC, have even less access to the vaccine than others, and called for more outreach to help them navigate the system that is befuddling and frustrating most people who’ve tried to deal with it. Meantime, West Seattle/South Park Councilmember Lisa Herbold cited stats on the inequitable distribution of vaccinations, while expressing outrage at the continuing reports of preferential access; her comments are summarized here. She also repeated what she had said in her Friday newsletter, that the city would eventually have a mass vaccination site in West Seattle; her meeting to discuss this with the mayor’s office is scheduled for Tuesday.

NOTABLE NATIONAL STAT: Bloomberg News reports that the number of Americans who have received at least one dose of vaccine has now exceeded the number who’ve tested positive during the pandemic – 26.5 million to 26.3 million.

NEED FOOD? This week’s nearest Food Lifeline distribution is 2-5 pm Friday (February 5th) at 815 S. 96th.

GOT SOMETHING TO REPORT? westseattleblog@gmail.com or 206-293-6302, text/voice – thank you!

KT February 2, 2021 (1:37 am)

Lisa Herbold’s comments are interesting seeing as on Sunday the Seattle Fire Department vaccinated 400 members of United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) 21. Tens of thousands of Seattle city taxpayers aged 65 and over spend hours on-line every damn day trying to find somewhere to get a shot but a Union gets special priority courtesy of the City of Seattle using City of Seattle resources. How is this justified?The City of Seattle screams “equity” at every opportunity and yet decided that this particular subset of people, of the thousands of people who are eligible trying to find a vaccine, should be singled out, pulled out of line, and given favored treatment at a special event just for them. How does this differ from hospitals handing out vaccines to donors and other people with the right connections? The City of Seattle should be ashamed of this political pandering.

Mellow Kitty February 2, 2021 (9:36 am)

(genuine question) Are there vaccine sites that don’t require people to have a car? It seems like a vast majority of testing and vaccine sites are set up for people who own cars – or would need a car to get to (for lack of better words) out of area sites.

WSB February 2, 2021 (10:21 am)

If they ever get vaccines, so far the ones we’ve identified include the local QFC pharmacy and the two local Safeway pharmacies. But I’ve been checking daily (for researching the nightly roundup – I personally am not eligible yet) and none of them have supplies/availability. There are many, many others who’ve signed up to be providers but they too can only wait for vaccine availability…

KT February 2, 2021 (10:16 am)

Lisa Herbold’s comments on preferential access to the vaccine are interesting but odd considering that on Sunday the Seattle Fire Department vaccinated 400 members of United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) 21. Tens of thousands of Seattle city taxpayers aged 65 and over spend hours on-line every damn day trying to find somewhere to get a shot but a Union gets special priority courtesy of the City of Seattle using City of Seattle resources. How is this justified?The City of Seattle screams “equity” at every opportunity and yet decided that this particular subset of people, of the thousands banging their heads against the wall every day trying to find a vaccine, should be singled out, pulled out of line, and given favored treatment at a specially arranged event just for them. How does this differ from hospitals handing out vaccines to donors and other people with the right connections? The City of Seattle should be ashamed of this political pandering.

Ivan Weiss February 2, 2021 (12:15 pm)

Do you need to eat? Yes or no? If yes, then you need a grocery worker, and that grocery worker who handles the food that you — and everybody else — needs to eat, needs to be virus-free so that you — and everybody else — will be virus-free. Pandering, is it? All I see in your comment is pandering — to ignorance!
- Buddy February 2, 2021 (2:12 pm)
  
  Every body needs a shot cause we are all humans who don’t want to get Covid-19 and want to live! No human is above any other other human in this community.
  - Buddy February 2, 2021 (6:01 pm)
    
    Buddy wants everyone to get a shot for Covid-19 and understands why people who work with random people at work every day are scared for their lives when they go to work each day. It’s frustrating that certain individuals have to wait their turn to get a shot, since lots of people desire to get their shot.
- KT February 2, 2021 (2:47 pm)
  
  Show me specific statistical evidence that grocery workers in Seattle are infected at a greater rate than anyone else over aged 65. Show me specific statistical evidence that grocery workers in Seattle are dying at a greater rate than anyone else over 65. Why, just the other day the CEO of PCC Markets reported that they have had only 36 of their 1710 staff contract Covid since last February. That’s 36 in almost a year. No infections were determined to have been contracted at work. Ya, it’s pandering to the union to give them a specially arranged event to get vaccinated.
  - Brian February 3, 2021 (9:00 am)
    
    How about you do your own research instead of trying to make everyone else prove you right?
Thomas Wood February 2, 2021 (5:26 pm)

Shame on you! This was a very specific group that was vaccinated. Maybe you should read who and why .Before you shoot your mouth off.

Sillygoose February 2, 2021 (10:30 am)

I just read Herbolds letter with her frustrations that the Black/African-Americans make up 12% of King County’s COVID-19 cases, but only 3.5% of vaccinations,” said Herbold. But….how many of these citizens in this demographics are declining the vaccine is my question, does she have stats on that? I know many many people in this demographics who are stating they are not going to get the vaccine out of distrust of the pharmacies.

@ KT the food and commercial workers are those who are working in grocery stores that are subjected to hundreds of citizens a day so you can eat! Why wouldn’t they get the vaccine early.

anonyme February 3, 2021 (3:07 pm)

I have no problem with efficient, mass vaccination events as long as all the recipients are eligible. I just wish that somebody gave a rat’s a$$ about currently eligible senior citizens with limited or no access or transportation, and no vaccination sites in West Seattle. It seems like the entire process is being politicized, and seniors completely left out of the equity equation.

Sorry, comment time is over.