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County Cases Slow, Hospitalizations Rise
H
umboldt County Public Health confirmed five new COVID-19 cases as the Journal went to press Feb. 9 — the lowest daily tally since Nov. 18 — though the county did announce two new hospitalizations, making four this week. Local case counts have slowed in recent weeks, with the county reporting 157 new cases last week, which came on the heels of 258 the week prior and the county’s averaging more than 31 cases per day in January. Hospitalizations, which tend to lag weeks behind confirmed case numbers, continue to rise locally, with the county having reported a single-week record 17 last week. The state of California, meanwhile, also updated its COVID-19 risk tiers Feb. 9, with Humboldt and all but five other counties remaining in the most restrictive purple “widespread” tier. The state data shows Humboldt County having recorded an average of 15.9 new COVID-19 cases per day per 100,000 residents with a seven-day average test positivity rate of 5.2 percent, though the state’s data lags more than a week behind local numbers. The state as a whole reported averaging 33.1 new cases per day per 100,000 residents with an average test
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positivity rate of 8.5 percent. To be moved out of the purple tier, Humboldt County would need to see average daily case totals fall below seven per 100,000 residents with a test-positivity rate less than 8 percent. Vaccination efforts, meanwhile, continue to move slowly forward, with residents over the age of 75, healthcare workers, teachers and first responders currently eligible to receive their shots. In a press release yesterday, Public Health urged any local residents 75 and older who haven’t been contacted by their primary care provider or who don’t have one to call the Joint Information Center at 441-5000 to schedule a COVD-19 vaccination. In a press release today, Humboldt County Public Health Director Michelle Stephens urged residents to do whatever they can to keep their vaccination appointments once they’re made. “Missed appointments slow vaccination progress,” she said, adding that both vaccines currently in circulation have stringent storage and handling requirements, so once they’ve been distributed for a clinic, they cannot be re-stored for future use. “No doses go to waste, so if you miss your appointment, your vaccine is given to someone else. But that means you’ll have
For the Birds: The city of Arcata is asking residents to avoid tree trimming or other major yard work that disturbs or removes vegetation as bird nesting season arrives. The first of February marked the start of early nesting season, when hummingbirds and birds of prey, including kites, hawks, owls and eagles, begin bedding down, followed by most others around mid-April through the summer months. POSTED 02.08.21
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In the Trees
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The Sequoia Park Zoo Redwood Skywalk, pending some inspections by the city and a certificate of occupancy, should be open to the public in the coming weeks. “Everyone is busy with final preparations and excited to start welcoming guests into the trees soon,” the zoo wrote on Twitter recently. POSTED 02.06.21 Submitted to schedule a new appointment, which may not be available in the timeframe you need.” As of Feb. 9, Humboldt County had confirmed 2,960 cases, with 122 hospitalizations and 32 confirmed COVID-19 related deaths. Twelve Humboldt County residents were currently hospitalized, according to the county’s dashboard, including five under intensive care. Humboldt County’s ICU capacity was listed at 25 percent. The county dashboard lists 2,765 people as having “recovered” from the virus
locally, though that just means they are no longer contagious and does not account for long-term health impacts, which local healthcare workers have told the Journal can be substantial, even in previously healthy patients. The county’s test positivity rate has gone from 3.6 percent in November, to 7.3 percent in December, to 9.9 percent in January. Through the first nine days of February, the test-positivity rate sat at 8.1 percent. — Thadeus Greenson POSTED 02.09.21 Read the full story online.
Age Remains Primary: A group of influential California health experts is backing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision to make age the main criteria for determining when residents get the COVID-19 vaccine, dismaying advocates who’d hoped it would recommend moving people with disabilities or chronic medical conditions to the front of the line with people age 65 and older. They found older residents to be at greater risk of critical outcomes. POSTED 02.04.21
Ryan’s Law Bill is Back: State legislators, including North Coast Assemblymember Jim Wood, are reintroducing a bill that would require hospitals and healthcare facilities to allow terminally ill patients access to certain forms of medical cannabis. Known as Ryan’s Law after late San Diego resident Ryan Bartell who died in 2018 of stage 4 pancreatic cancer, the legislation was vetoed in 2019 by Gov. Gavin Newsom. POSTED 02.05.21
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Digitally Speaking
They Said It
Comment of the Week
The U.S. Supreme Court vote determining Gov. Gavin Newsom’s bans on worship services to curb the spread of COVID-19 to be an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment. Instead, the court said California can cap church capacity at 25 percent and also prohibit singing and chanting. POSTED 02.08.21
“In my head I was like, ‘This is not hard to do with better ingredients and sourced locally.”
“It is crazy to expect that journalism must be paid for by business advertising. All it ensures is that the opinions of the chambers of commerce will drown out those of journalists. It is a large part of why our country and economy are in the terrible position they are in today.”
— Cormac McGrady on how the national obsession over Popeye’s spicy chicken sandwich inspired him to start Arcata’s Couxp food truck, which specializes in friend chicken sandwiches and wings. POSTED 02.07.21
— Mitch Trachtenberg commenting on last week’s publisher’s column (“About Those Ads,” Feb. 4) responding to backlash over recent tobacco advertisements run in the Journal. POSTED 02.04.21 northcoastjournal.com • Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021 • NORTH COAST JOURNAL
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