Exclusive: Matter of time before COVID variant found in Tri-Cities, says WA health secretary

Variants of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 have not been identified in Eastern Washington, but it’s only a matter a time, said Dr. Umair Shah, the secretary of health for the state of Washington.

He made his first visit to the Tri-Cities last week, meeting with Benton Franklin Health District leaders, touring the mass vaccination site at the Benton County Fairgrounds and talking with the Tri-City Herald.

He became the state’s secretary of health in December, after previously serving as the executive director and health authority for public health in Harris County, Texas, the nation’s third largest county.

Both the University of Washington and the Washington state Department of Health are checking COVID-19 test samples from across the state for variants of the coronavirus.

“We don’t have the ability to sample everything right now because there are way too many tests,” Shah said.

Washington state is among the states doing the most testing for variants, but it still needs to be checking more samples, he said.

Fifteen cases of a variant, or mutation of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, that was first identified in the United Kingdom have been detected in Washington state, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

They are of concern because the variant, called B117, can spread more easily and quickly.

Experts in the United Kingdom also report that it may be associated with an increased risk of death, although more studies are needed to confirm that.

The first cases of the B117 variant in Washington state were found in test samples collected from Snohomish County residents, the Washington state Department of Health said Jan. 23. It has since been detected in King, Pierce and Clark counties.

Preventing variant spread

Although the prevalence of the B117 variant is suspected to be low so far in Western Washington, the CDC says it could become the predominant variant in the United States by March.

Two other variants of concern — one that emerged in South Africa and another that emerged in Brazil — have reached the United States but have not been detected in Washington state, according to the CDC.

Vaccinating as many people as soon as possible as more vaccine becomes available will help control the spread, Shah said. Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines appear to be effective against the most common variants.

The other strategy to combat new variants is what is already being done to control the spread of COVID-19, Shah said. Wash your hands, watch your distance and wear a mask, he said.

It is important to be meticulous about those steps, even as that becomes tedious, and to be tested, even if people only have a bit of a sniffle, he said.

“We may be tired of the virus, but the virus is not tired of us,” he said.

Tri-Cities COVID cases

The Tri-Cities rates of new COVID cases have remained higher than the state average, which may be because it’s not as large as some urban areas of the Northwest, Shah said.

People may be thinking, “I don’t need to worry about wearing a mask. It is not going to happen in my community. I can take a day off,” he said.

“I think what this virus has shown us is that the moment you take your eye off of it, the moment you are not meticulous, the moment you are not taking care of those everyday preventive actions is the moment that it actually overwhelms a community, overwhelms a health care system,” he said.

For now, as soon as COVID-19 vaccines as arrive in the Tri-Cities, there are more than enough eligible people who want them.

But that could shift as those most eager to be vaccinated are immunized, Shah said.

“If you are a community member and it is your turn to get vaccinated, don’t hesitate,” he said.

He’s also concerned about the disparity in vaccination rates by race and ethnicity in the state, including the Hispanic population.

“It’s a real call to action,” he said.

Hispanic vaccine rate

As of last week Hispanics made up 4.7% of people who had received a first dose of vaccine and 5.9% of the much smaller number of people who were fully vaccinated. Yet they make up 13.2% of the state’s population.

In the Tri-Cities area, 8,450 COVID cases have been reported in Hispanic people and 5,182 in people who are non-Hispanic whites. However, data is incomplete, with information on race and ethnicity not available for 9,270 cases.

A lower rate of vaccination in Latinos is an issue not just in Washington state, but across the country, Shah said.

There are issues of language, immigration status, mistrust of the government and others, and false information being shared on social media, he said.

“They are getting competing information that isn’t always correct,” he said. “They are making decisions that unfortunately are impacting potentially their health.”

Shah praised the vaccination system he saw at the Benton County Fairgrounds, but said the community needs to keep working to make the experience welcoming and safe to all community members.

“It is not just about throughput, but about assuring equity,” he said. That includes access for people with mobility issues.

But overall the Kennewick fairgrounds drive-thru clinic is an “impressive operation,” he said.

The Tri-Cities site has administered 12,257 doses of the vaccine, the most of the Washington state Department of Health’s four mass vaccination sites.