LONGVIEW _ COVID-19 has resurged in Cowlitz County. A steady rise in cases over the last month has left the county with case numbers around their highest level since the beginning of the pandemic.
The increase in cases and hospitalizations over recent weeks led Cowlitz County health officials Friday to recommend that all residents wear face masks and coverings indoors, regardless of their vaccination status, as an additional measure to slow the virus’ spread. Health officials also touted the benefits of the free COVID-19 vaccine to residents who are still unvaccinated.
Cowlitz County Deputy Health Director Dr. Steve Krager said the rapid increase in both total cases and hospitalizations for COVID patients was alarming. Krager said the pandemic’s outlook for the county was as precarious and dangerous since the first mentions of hospitals running out of beds at the start of 2020.
“This is going up very quickly… It’s very concerning where we are now. Where are we going to be in a couple of weeks?” Krager said.
Delta variant hits Cowlitz County
During the week after the Fourth of July holiday, the county was in a lull for the virus. New COVID cases were at their lowest rate of the year, with an average of seven new cases being reported a day. Washington’s mask mandate expired at the end of June and the majority of businesses and regions chose to drop theirs as well.
Case counts began increasing around July 10 and steadily increased until Cowlitz County was seeing near-record case numbers. There were 400 cases reported in the county between Aug. 2 and Aug. 6, according to the county health department.
Hospitalizations increased at the same time, setting a record recently as 27 Cowlitz County residents were hospitalized in a seven-day span.
The delta variant of the virus was responsible for more than 80% of Washington COVID cases, according to the state Department of Health. Cowlitz County only gets genetic analysis on a small fraction of COVID samples, but Krager was sure the mutated form of COVID was just as dominant here.
“What’s happening in Cowlitz County is what delta looks like: a lot of cases happening and larger outbreaks of cases than we were used to, all happening more quickly because of how contagious it is,” Krager said.
Krager said some of the biggest outbreaks the county had seen recently were from youth camps, where the vast majority of kids are too young to be vaccinated or whose parents have chosen against vaccination. County health officials also were tracing outbreaks at businesses and small get-togethers that were held indoors.
The mask recommendation was an attempt to return to the COVID prevention methods that had been effective for the last year and a half, Krager said. Krager said that Cowlitz County often has a low rate of residents taking COVID tests, so he asked residents to take any potential symptoms of the virus seriously.
“I would not blame things on allergies right now with how much COVID-19 we have in the community,” Krager said.
Rising number of vaccine mandates
Krager emphasized the benefits of the COVID vaccines as the best overall weapon against the virus. A recent study conducted by the public health departments for Cowlitz County and five other counties in southwest Washington found that being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 reduced the risk of being hospitalized by 90%.
PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center announced a vaccine mandate for employees that will take effect at the end of August. Employees who choose not to be vaccinated will be under additional protocols for masking and COVID-19 testing and could potentially be reassigned away from patient-care settings.
Gov. Jay Inlsee announced Monday that state employees and on-site contractors will be required to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The state employees, along with private health care workers and long-term care workers, will need to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 18.
Krager said those types of mandates can be effective in increasing vaccination rates. For the majority of people, however, Krager advised them to consult with their local physician if they had personal health concerns and trust the growing medical literature that showed the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine.
“You can always find some expert or doctor that agrees with your opinion. That does not mean the vast majority of public health experts agree with that,” Krager said.
The rising case numbers in Cowlitz County mirror the national rise in cases the delta variant has caused, especially among unvaccinated people. The average number of COVID cases per day has increased from fewer than 8,000 cases June 21 to more than 100,000 cases by Aug. 3.
