WSU COVID cases spike and Benton cases top 15,000. Vaccine appointments available

The Franklin County new case rate for COVID-19 dropped Monday to close to where it will must be to stay in Phase 3 of reopening next month.

On Monday all counties in the state moved from Phase 2 to Phase 3, but will need a case rate of lower than 200 on April 12 or will be moved back to Phase 2.

Recently, Franklin County had the highest case rate of any county in the state, according to an official with the Benton Franklin Health District.

But by Friday, Whitman County, home to Washington State University in Pullman, appeared to have far more cases per population after a recent sharp increase.

Franklin County on Monday had a case rate of 204 new cases per 100,000 people for the two weeks ending March 15.

That was down from case rates that were reported as high as 233 last week.

There is a lag in the weeks considered for the current case rate because new cases reported to public health officials are backdated to the day a person was tested.

Whitman County had a case rate of 505 for the two weeks ending March 13, according to Whitman County Public Health.

The WSU COVID dashboard showed the case rate among WSU students rising rapidly over the last month, without a corresponding increase in other Whitman County residents.

Whitman County Public Health did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

No information was immediately available on Monday about why its rate was so high.

Benton County was easily meeting the new case requirement to remain in Phase 3 of reopening as of Monday.

It had 124 new cases per 100,000 for the two weeks ending March 15.

Tri-Cities COVID cases

The Tri-Cities had 86 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed over the last three days, the Benton Franklin Health District said Monday.

That comes to just under 29 cases per day, close to the average of 30 daily cases last week and 31 the week before.

The new cases announced Monday brought the total for Benton County to more than 15,000 since the start of the pandemic.

Benton County had 51 new cases announced Monday, bringing its total cases confirmed with positive test results since the start of the pandemic to 15,031.

Franklin County had 35 more cases, bringing its total cases to 11,229. Together the two counties have had 26,260 cases confirmed.

The Tri-Cities area has had 306 deaths since the start of the pandemic, including 207 in Benton County and 99 in Franklin County.

There were 14 people hospitalized locally as of Monday for treatment of COVID-19, up two from before the weekend.

The 14 COVID patients account for just under 4% of the 378 patients hospitalized in Richland, Kennewick, Pasco and Prosser.

The number of new COVID-19 hospital patients also will be considered by the Washington state Department of Health next month as it decides if counties can stay in Phase 3 of reopening.

Benton and Franklin counties ended 2020 with 74 COVID-19 patients in hospitals.

COVID vaccine available

The drive-thru vaccination site at the Benton County Fairgrounds has changed its hours to stay open to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday and Friday this week in addition to being open Saturday morning as more workers are eligible for the COVID vaccine.

Appointments were posted over the weekend for the site, and more than 2,500 openings remained by Monday morning, with only 200 of those for Saturday, March 27.

The site will be open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday and Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.

First or second doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be given to those eligible for the vaccine.

To get an appointment, go to prepmod.doh.wa.gov and click on “Find a Clinic.” On the next page scroll down to find appointments by date and location. Be sure to check all pages.

Registration for any open appointments also may be made by calling the Washington state COVID-19 Assistance Hotline at 800-525-0127 and pressing #. Help is available in English and Spanish.

More people will be answering the phones starting Monday to shorten wait times, according to the Washington state Department of Health.

Many vaccination sites, including the Kennewick fairgrounds, require proof of eligibility. Go to the Washington state Phase Finder at FindYourPhaseWA.org, answer questions and then take a screenshot or photo of eligibility verification.

Those getting their second dose will need to bring the vaccine record card they were given at their first appointment. It shows the date and type of vaccine.

The Tri-Cities fairgrounds forms a holding line most days for unused vaccine doses, with the line typically forming in the afternoons on weekdays.

Organizers say that the holding line is for those eligible for the vaccine under Washington state rules, but people are posting on social media that exceptions have been made.

Those most recently eligible for the vaccine include workers in grocery stores; prisons, jails or related court settings; homeless or domestic violence shelters; and public transit. More emergency responders also are eligible.

Local public health officials say some restaurant workers also may be eligible for the vaccine.

In addition, women who are pregnant and people with a disability that could them at a high risk for severe COVID-19 illness — ranging from Down Syndrome to blindness or deafness — also are newly eligible.

More COVID vaccine

To look for other Tri-Cities area places offering COVID vaccines, go to vaccinelocator.doh.wa.gov, type in your zip code and you’ll get a list of all locations with vaccines available within 50 miles.

Most locations listed say whether appointments are available, with availability information frequently updated.

On Monday, six Tri-Cities pharmacies had open appointments.

This story was originally published March 22, 2021 at 2:21 PM.