Military leaders, analysts, and planners evaluate the capabilities of a force using combat effectiveness. Combat effectiveness takes more into account than the number of well-trained soldiers and the quality and quantity of available equipment. It considers leadership, psychological stress, the level of support on the battlefield and the home front, and the clarity of mission. If enough of these factors deteriorate, a military unit or even an entire army can become “combat ineffective.” Our medical community has been combat ineffective for months, and no one is doing anything about it. It is time for a strategic retreat, and for officials in Washington state to close the doors to out-of-state COVID patients.
Well before COVID, thousands of healthcare workers walked away from years of training and satisfying careers. A decades-long shift in how America delivers hospital services has led to the shuttering of hundreds of rural and suburban hospitals and the rise of large centers of care in urban areas. The ratio of patients to nurses and doctors had become unmanageable at many facilities. After the last 19 months of relentless trauma where appreciation is now Starbucks gift cards and slices of pizza, thousands more have said enough.
In Washington state, the ongoing onslaught at hospitals goes beyond the surge of COVID patients. In early 2021 the state was in lockdown. Schools were remote. Many people worked from home or were supported by a variety of unemployment programs. With life on pause and elective surgeries essentially canceled, the day-to-day events in hospitals slowed while COVID raged. The surge was a struggle and traumatic, as patients gasped for breath and said goodbyes over Zoom meetings. After shifts were over, nurses and doctors who worked the COVID wards would lay awake with the alarms still ringing in their heads and feared going to sleep because of the nightmares.
By late spring, it appeared that the worst was in the past. COVID cases plummeted nationwide, and Washington state cautiously opened back up in phases. The vaccine rolled out, and with it, a political and cultural war erupted. Hospitals resumed necessary elective procedures again. Mass vaccination sites replaced mass testing sites, and the medical community triumphantly celebrated empty ICUs.
However, the winter had taken a heavy toll. Thousands stopped being hospitalists, quit, retired, or left the country. Highly skilled doctors, nurses, and specialists saw too much death and watched a small but vocal minority call them villains, crisis actors, and paid government agents. Online they were accused of being murderers, stalked, harassed, and for public-facing officials threatened. ICU patients over the winter would scream to see oncologists for “sudden onset lung cancer,” and deny they had COVID to their dying breath. They demanded treatments that offered no therapeutic value because the Intenet told them.
While Washingtonians celebrated their new freedom, the medical community got suckered punched. COVID patients were no longer the issue. A surge in gun violence across the state coupled with people who had their health get worse due to delayed medical procedures, and an increase in everyday traumas like car accidents, took away the respite hospitalists anticipated. At the end of June, a historic heatwave flooded emergency departments statewide with heat-related injuries. On June 28, the Seattle Fire Department responded to 555 911 calls – a typical day would be half of that.
Hospitals’ most significant profits come from elective procedures and out-patient clinics. Cut off from that revenue stream for months, leadership made difficult choices and laid off staff. When the hospitals emptied of COVID patients, the number of elective surgeries exploded, but the staff wasn’t rehired. In many cases, the rush was necessary. People hear “elective surgery” and think tonsillectomies, breast augmentation, and hernia repairs. In reality, cancer surgeries, heart valve replacements, and gallbladder removals were delayed.
File photo
By mid-July, the Delta variant of COVID was establishing itself in Washington state. A tale of two Washingtons emerged – highly vaccinated counties in Western and Northwest Washington and low vaccinated counties in Eastern and Southwest Washington. By the beginning of August, a strong sense of déjà vu moved through the medical community, but there was a plot twist. When the state was locked down in January, hospitals had fewer non-COVID patients. Facing a new surge, hospitals were already near capacity.
To the south and east, the situation was worse. Oregon and Idaho were straining with a flood of COVID patients. They were younger, sicker, and needed more intensive care. They were largely unvaccinated and wholly convinced that COVID was just a cold. Some continued to post COVID misinformation from their hospital beds while harassing hospital staff.
Unlike the original and Alpha variant from the winter, the gains made in therapeutic strategies waned. By the spring of 2021, patients on ventilators had a much higher survival rate than in 2020. Doctors had learned a lot more about sustaining patients during the worst phases of a severe COVID infection. Delta took that progress away. Currently, patients on ventilators have a 20% to 30% survival rate, the same as in April 2020. The people dying were younger and healthier, and the deaths were senseless. Some begged to be vaccinated, but it was far too late.
The cross-state connections among the medical community run deep. Hospital networks like PeaceHealth, Providence, and Kaiser Permanente have locations across the Pacific Northwest states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, PeaceHealth in Vancouver, and Providence in Spokane frequently take transfer patients from out of state. Harborview Medical Center is a lifeline for burn, cardiac, orthopedic, and critically ill patients from the Pacific Northwest, notably Alaska.
By the end of August, it was evident that Washington state was facing a historic surge. Oregon officials were doing everything they could to avoid moving to crisis standards of care, where ethics boards make rapid decisions on who does and doesn’t get access to limited medical resources. In rural counties, COVID tore through the unvaccinated.
In Josephine County, officials actively undermined state efforts to stop the surge and advocated the use of ivermectin. An inventory search at Tractor Supply stores indicated there wasn’t a tube of horse dewormer within a 150-mile radius of Grants Pass. Hundreds protested outside the hospital doors at the 378 bed Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center, while multiple COVID patients died daily.
Idaho Lt. Governor Janice McGeachin poises with a Bible, American flag, and a handgun this summer
In Idaho, state health officials warned they too were on the brink of moving to crisis standards of care. While doctors begged their citizens to wear masks and get vaccinated, Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin platformed COVID misinformation and actively worked against medical leaders and Governor Brad Little. Dr. Ryan Cole, a peddler of COVID misinformation, a man who called the COVID vaccine “needle rape,” and an advocate for America’s Frontline Doctors, set public health policy for Ada County, the largest county in Idaho.
Washington hospitals started taking fewer out-of-state patients as the crisis worsened. Today, the medical systems in Idaho and Alaska have collapsed. Both states believe the worst is yet to come and is weeks away.
In Montana, one hospital in Helena has moved to crisis standards of care. The largest hospital in Billings has stated they are on the brink, and hospitals in Missoula are running out of options.
The entire state of Idaho is under crisis standards of care. Hundreds of patients have been turned away from hospitals. Infected COVID patients requiring high flow oxygen treatment as high as 20 liters per hour would usually be admitted –today, they are sent home. Providers of home oxygen therapy are running out of canisters.
Alaska’s largest hospital is operating under crisis standards of care, and the entire state has less than 20 ICU beds available. State officials are openly lamenting about the constraints Seattle hospitals are facing.
An analysis of news reports, press conferences, and hospital statements reveals that Washington is caring for dozens of COVID patients from Alaska, Idaho, Montana, and Oregon. In Spokane, Providence Hospital has 29 patients from Idaho. Many require BIPAP or ventilators.
For the medical professionals who have been at war for 19 months, the situation is unstainable. PTSD, trauma, and frustration have reached a critical level while staff treats patients in hallways, conference rooms, and tents. Staffing itself is in constant crisis. In mid-August, PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center begged people not to come to the emergency department due to being severely understaffed. Part of the reason? Many unvaccinated hospital employees were patients in the hospital.
A skilled sniper will sometimes wound an enemy soldier on the battlefield. Instead of removing a single enemy, it removes three as someone has to provide care, and a wounded comrade damages morale. The unvaccinated medical staff has the same impact, and COVID is the sniper.
The crisis in the Pacific Northwest has reached the point medical ethics experts are considering the toll transfer patients are taking on Washington and possible options. Dr. Doug White, the director of the University of Pittsburgh’s Program on Ethics and Decision Making in Critical Illness, spoke with NBC News on September 16. While Washington’s health care services may feel a moral obligation to help, the need for action falls to Idaho’s state government.
“Medical practice is regulated at the state level, public health interventions come at the state level, and so in an emergency like this, I do think that the state lines become very important because what we’re seeing is these very stark differences between how Washington state has responded to the pandemic and how Idaho has responded to the pandemic,” he said, noting that Washington’s aggressive safety measures came at some cost to the state.”
Bluntly put, the efforts in Idaho and Alaska have been reactive, not proactive. Even among the unwilling, Washington state did more work than Alaska, Idaho, and Montana. In Western Washington, people rushed to get vaccinated. During the winter surge, Washington hospitals helped carry the load of Idaho, Montana, and Alaska. Lockdowns were unpopular, but a majority of Washingtonians did their part. Idaho has done little to protect its residents, and leadership has hired policymakers who don’t believe in science 101. To use an analogy, Washington was the kid who did the class project alone while Idaho, Alaska, and Montana drank beer behind the school gym.
There is a desperate need for a strategic retreat for Washington hospitalists when you look through the lens of combat effectiveness. Our hospitals were short-staffed before COVID and before vaccine mandates. Nationally, hospital systems that have enacted vaccination policies have achieved 96% to 99% compliance, with a handful of outliers.
Staff is working forced overtime, caring for patients in tents, waiting rooms, and hallways. PACUs have been converted into critical care units, slowing down emergency surgeries. With acute care units and ICUs filled, patients are backed up in emergency departments. People waiting for a hospital bed in the emergency department or other makeshift wards are called boarders, and sometimes they are waiting for days. Harborview Medical Center had over 40 boarders last week, more than 20 in the emergency department.
Hospital staff continues to deal with equipment shortages from the necessary agents to evaluate COVID tests, nasal cannulas, oxygen canisters, BIPAP and ECMO machines, and proning beds. Ambulances travel longer distances to do patient transfers and sometimes wait for hours to unload patients. Supplies of vital medications fluctuate, and one hospital in Yakima had an oxygen shortage.
When it comes to having the support of the home front, the medical community isn’t feeling it or seeing it. The COVID denial and anti-vaccination communities are small, but you would never know it on social media. Efforts at Facebook to control COVID misinformation ultimately failed while Twitter struggled to balance free speech versus protecting the public welfare from bull shit. On Tik Tok, misinformation runs wild while subject matter experts who create accurate content have their accounts closed for “community guideline violations.” The appeal process is opaque and capricious.
Medical workers are bombarded with messages that hospitals are empty, COVID is just the flu, and the vaccine doesn’t work. It is psychological warfare, and for some, it includes their friends and family who have fallen into QAnon rabbit holes or have accepted disinformation as the truth. After a 16-hour shift where they put three people into body bags, they see maskless people walking around the grocery store like everything is normal.
While the community tells them they are frauds, hospital management tells them they aren’t valued. As an example, Kaiser Permanente is negotiating in bad faith with its nurses. In Portland, Oregon, the company has offered a 1% pay raise in recent contract negotiations while paying traveling nurses $5,000, $6,000, even $8,000 a week. A nurse who quit to join the ranks of traveling nurses said, “they can treat me bad, or they can pay me bad, but they can’t do both.”
When it comes to clarity of mission, there is none. The American hospital system was not designed or staff to deal with an endless pandemic. Behind closed doors, hospital leaders are discussing the new normal. Until 85% to 90% of the total population gets vaccinated, which is a pipe dream, surges will continue. Hospital leaders are resigning themselves to continued COVID waves tearing through unvaccinated people. All while attempting to play catch up on canceled elective surgeries and supporting a nation fond of saying, “hold my beer and watch this,” for Internet clout.
The easiest way to make a strategic retreat and save what’s left of our battered hospital system is to reduce the patient load. The fastest way that can ethically be accomplished is to stop accepting COVID transfer patients from our Pacific Northwest neighbors.
Regrettably, the last three months have shown that a new tool in the fight against COVID misinformation has been the Delta variant itself. The virus has ruthlessly decimated prominent anti-vaccination voices and the people who followed them into an abyss. Their families and friends, taught the reality of COVID in the most terrible way possible, secretly get vaccinated.
By taking in the COVID patients of Alaska, Idaho, and Montana, Washington makes the crisis less visible in those states. It rewards their government leaders who actively spread misinformation. Idaho’s Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin should face the consequences of actively working against any action to protect Idaho’s people from an entirely preventable crisis. It will be increasingly difficult to claim COVID is just the flu, masks don’t work, and the vaccine is needle rape with multiple mobile morgues lined up in parking lots.
For non-COVID patients suffering from emergencies such as severe burns, heart attacks, and injuries from motor vehicle accidents, Washington should continue to try and find a place for them. These are the silent and hidden victims of a collapsing hospital system that is “combat ineffective.”
In medicine, compassion is a critical pillar, but it isn’t limitless. Where is the compassion for our doctors, nurses, specialists, and paramedics? The hospital systems of our neighbors are collapsing, and they are taking our medical community with them. Physician – heal thy self.
[KIRKLAND, Wash.] – (MTN) After a rollercoaster summer of record-shattering heat, a tie for the driest July since weather records have been kept, and 51 days without rain, fall is arriving. A particularly strong storm system for mid-September is delivering three days of rain, the potential for urban flooding, and strong winds on Friday afternoon.
The central pressure of the storm approaching is flirting with 990 MB, which is similar to Hurricane Nicholas that hit Texas on September 14. For the Kirkland-Bellevue-Woodinville area, the two issues will be rain through the weekend and wind this afternoon.
It’s already raining across the region, and rain will fall through the day, with the chance for heavy showers and even a growl of thunder. Over lunchtime, there could be a break in the rain, but don’t be fooled. Between 3 to 5 PM will the rain will pick up, get heavier, and the winds will increase. Peak winds will be between 7 PM and 10 PM at 15 to 20 MPH, with gusts up to 40 MPH.
The heatwave in June followed by very little rain has stressed many trees that are still full of leaves. Between the heat stress and the foliage that can act like sails, the usual trouble spots such as Finn Hill should expect to lose power. There isn’t enough wind in the forecast model in Central Puget Sound for a Wind Advisory, but areas north of Everett could see gusts over 50 MPH.
Temperatures will be in the low to mid-60s. Over the next 24 hours, close to an inch of rain should be expected for the area.
Rain will taper off briefly on Saturday morning, while the wind will continue into the afternoon. Another shot of rain will arrive around noon, and you should expect rain through Sunday. On Saturday another 1/3 of an inch is expected, with another 1/3 on Sunday. If the forecast model holds, our region will get a month of rain in 3 days, in what will feel like a repeat of our major rain event back on June 13-14.
Temperatures will hold in the mid-60s during the day and the mid-50s during the night.
Rain could get heavy enough to cause some minor urban flooding in locations such as 120th in Kirkland in front of Fred Meyer.
Knowledge is the best tool to fight against fear. A wise person chooses to be informed so they can make sound decisions. To join the fight against COVID misinformation, you can share this update through your social media platform of choice.
[KING COUNTY, Wash.] – (MTN) Today is Yom Kippur, so this will be an abbreviated COVID update. Today provided more indications that for new cases Washington is moving past the peak, but the percentage of tests coming back positive jumped significantly. For Washington state, this is the most positive COVID update since August 17.
The gap between the most vaccinated and least vaccinated counties continued to widen.
Seattle and King County announced the region is implemented a so-called “vaccine passport” that will begin on October 25.
We issue two corrections to our school district COVID dashboard, and 2 more Northshore SD schools have 5 or more confirmed COVID cases detected.
Regionally the situation in Alaska and Idaho has gotten worse, with Alaska down to 14 ICU beds statewide, and Idaho moving to crisis standards of care statewide.
Another decline in new trends, which is good news. In the South Central Hospital Region, which includes Benton, Franklin, Klickitat, Walla Walla, and Yakima counties, new cases are 862.8 per 100K people while the Central Hospital Region, which represents King County, had a rate of 288.8.
Percent of Total Population Fully Vaccinated
Average 14-Day New Case Rate (unadjusted)
50.00% or above (12 counties)
494.1
40.00% to 49.99% (18 counties)
717.4 (down)
27.30% to 39.99% (9 counties)
754.1
14-Day New COVID Cases per 100K average by Vaccination Rate, Not Adjusted for Population
Through September 15, Washington’s statewide 14-day rolling average was 484.9 COVID cases per 100K. Lincoln (1,384.6 per 100K), Franklin (1,226.8 per 100K), and Stevens (1,106.5 per 100K) reported an extreme number of new cases. Counties in the 800.0 to 999.9 per 100K range include Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Clallam, Douglas, Grant, Lewis, and Okanagan. This is an encouraging sign in case numbers, although there remain concerns with growing reports statewide of people finding it challenging to get tested. Additionally, home rapid tests are not included in the data.
The Washington State Department of Health reports a data backlog for test positivity, with the published number 14 days old. According to Johns Hopkins University Medicine, the positivity rate for the last 30 days is 14.02%, and over the previous 7 days, 16.98%. These 7 day rolling average for positivity jumped almost three percentage points from yesterday and the 30 day rolling average moved above 14% again. A single day of data does not make a trend. If we see similar numbers on Friday this would be a red light on the dashboard that access to COVID testing is more than an anecdotal issue.
The Department of Health changed how they are reporting Cases, Hospitalizations, and Testing by Age, yesterday. With the second day of data, we can provide a trend, but two days of data don’t show a complete picture. For right now consider these the current numbers. The data is encouraging.
Age Group
7-Day Case Rate
7-Day Hospitalization Rate
Ages 0-11
200.1 (down)
0.7
Ages 12-19
233.3 (down)
2.2
Ages 20-34
233.3 (down)
7.0 (down)
Ages 35-49
217.3 (down)
12.3 (down)
Ages 50-64
161.4 (down)
20.0
Ages 65-79
119.4 (down)
25.0 (down)
Ages 80+
123.6 (down)
37.7 (down)
7-day case rate and 7-day hospitalization rate is per 100K within the age group – the target for 7-day case rate is <25.0, but there are other factors such as vaccination rates within the age groups, how many total tests within the 7-day period, and the positivity rate within each age group
King County announces testing and vaccination requirements to enter restaurants, bars, gyms, theaters, and more
King County Executive Dow Constantine, Seattle Mayor Jenny A. Durkan, and community, health care, small business, and arts and culture partners joined in support of requiring verification of full vaccination or a negative test to enter certain indoor and outdoor activities and establishments.
A Health Order issued today by Public Health – Seattle & King County Health Officer Dr. Jeff Duchin, going into effect on October 25, will protect customers and workers through providing safer spaces, protecting our health care system, and helping prevent business closures. It will apply to:
Outdoor events with 500 people or more – such as professional and collegiate sports and entertainment events
Indoor entertainment and recreational events or establishments – such as professional and collegiate sports, entertainment, performing arts, museums, theatre, live music, gyms, and conferences/conventions.
Restaurants and bars (including indoor dining) – this does not apply to outdoor dining, take-out customers, and places that aren’t primarily used as a restaurant, such as grocery stores.
The order gives the option for a longer preparation period for smaller restaurants and bars with a seating capacity of 12 or less, with an implementation date of December 6. The entire order is not expected to be permanent. It will be reviewed no later than six months after the October 25th implementation date to assess its continued need based on future outbreak conditions.
“We are at a critical point in this pandemic, with high levels of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, and no certainty as to what will follow the Delta variant,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “Vaccination is our best shield against this deadly virus. With over 85 percent of King County residents having received at least their first vaccine dose, vaccine verification will help keep people safe and keep businesses open.”
Corrections
We have two corrections today both related to the Lake Washington School District. The first involves Robert Frost Elementary. We received multiple parental reports that due to quarantined students, one classroom had been made virtual. The way we report data, placed Robert Frost Elementary in the closure column. Those reports were incorrect and we will update the scorecard today.
The second error involves Henry Thoreau Elementary. On the Lake Washington School District COVID scorecard, there is a single active case at the school. We received the official communication from the LWSD, indicating there was one case, and three students quarantined. Yesterday, when the scorecard was updated from 1 to 4, the footnote asterisk was not removed. Because the asterisk remained, it created confusion on the number of active cases. We apologize for the omission, and we have updated the scorecard to indicate that the number is active cases and quarantined combined.
Travel Advisories
We recommend avoiding all travel to Spokane, Yakima, Klickitat, Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla counties, along with the states of Alaska and Idaho. Hospital resources in these regions are so constrained that you may receive inadequate care if you experience a medical emergency.
Thank you
Thank you to our new subscribers and those of you who have made one-time contributions. On behalf of the entire team, thank you for helping us keep the lights on!
No promotional consideration has been given, or requested from the n95 project or any manufacturer of masks
Vaccination
No update
King County, Washington is reporting over 85% of age eligible residents are vaccinated with at least one dose. The highest rates of positivity are in areas with low vaccination rates statewide. The FDA has provided full approval of the Pfizer vaccine for anyone 16 and over.
COVID vaccines are free for anyone over 12 years old, and no appointment is necessary at most locations. Lyft and Hopelink provide free transportation, and KinderCare, the Learning Care Group, and the YMCA offer free childcare during vaccination appointments or recuperation.
According to the DoH COVID Dashboard, 22.7% of all acute care patients hospitalized in Washington have COVID. A hospital system caring for this many COVID-positive patients in acute care is considered to be under “severe stress.” ICUs are at 91.8% of capacity statewide, with 36.1% of ICU patients fighting COVID. This is unchanged from yesterday
The hospital admission rate Epidemiologic Curve dashboard is not working for the second day in a row. The Department of Health reported there were 1,654 COVID patients statewide on September 15 and 259 on ventilators. New cases were up slightly, while the number of patients on ventilators decreased.
EvergreenHealth COVID patient information for September 13, 2021
On September 13 EvergreenHealth reported 39 COVID patients in Kirkland. This morning they released detailed information about the patients. 77% of COVID patients are unvaccinated, which includes a pediatric patient under 12-years old. In the ICU 91% are unvaccinated and 4 are on ventilators.
Two-thirds of the vaccinated patients are 60 years old or older, while 51% of all patients are birth to 59 years old.
– Alcott Elementary (1*) – Carson Elementary (2*) – Dickinson Elementary (1*) – Eastlake High (1*) – Einstein Elementary (1*) – Ella Baker Elementary (1*) – Robert Frost Elementary (9) – Juanita Elementary (2*) – Juanita High School (37) – Peter Kirk Elementary (1*) – Redmond Elementary (2*) – Redmond Middle School (1*) – Robert Frost Elementary – Rose Hill Elementary (1*) – Rose Hill/Stella Schola Middle School (1*) – Thoreau Elementary (4)
– Kamiakin Middle School (140) – Mark Twain Elementary (3*)
Northshore
YELLOW
– Arrowhead Elementary (11) – Bothell High School (42**) – Canyon Creek Elementary (17) – Canyon Park Middle School (5) – Cottage Lake Elementary (12) – Crystal Springs Elementary (14) – East Ridge Elementary (15) – Fernwood Elementary (8**) – Frank Love Elementary (20) – Hollywood Hills Elementary (4) – Inglemoor High School (5) – Innovation Lab High School (4) – Kenmore Elementary (37**) – Kenmore Middle School (37**) – Kokanee Elementary (20) – Lookwood Elementary (1) – Maywood Hills Elementary (10) – North Creek High School (15**) – Northshore Middle School (7) – Ruby Bridges Elementary (6) – Secondary Academy for Success (1) – Shelton View Elementary (18**) – Skyview Middle School (77) – Sunrise Elementary (21) – Timbercrest Middle School (23) – Westhill Elementary (6) – Wellington Elementary (24) – Woodin Elementary (5) – Woodinville High School (19) – Woodmore Elementary (20**)
Under Investigation
Local Districts Scorecard – * indicates positive cases only ** indicates 5 or more confirmed positive cases
The Lake Washington School District data hasn’t been updated since Friday. As noted in our corrections section, we have updated the report to indicate that the parental reports we received were inaccurate.
Northshore School District now has 7 schools reporting 5 or more confirmed COVID cases with an expanding number of students in quarantine across the district. We would appeal for other school districts to follow their model of transparency.
Kirkland-Bellevue-Woodinville
No update
National Round-Up
Johns Hopkins University Cumulitaive Case Tracker is reporting 171,350 new cases and 2,678 deaths nationwide.
Today is Yom Kippur, and we are providing an abbreviated national news section.
Doctors, nurses and administrators around the state have described staffing shortages and an overburdened system trying to provide care for higher numbers of COVID-19 patients and non-COVID patients alike.
Providence Alaska Medical Center doctors announced this week the hospital has started rationing care under crisis-care protocols, a worst-case scenario that forces providers to prioritize patients most likely to recover. Limited resources at Alaska Native Medical Center are prompting longer waits and delayed surgeries. Alaska Regional is prioritizing surgeries for the most critical patients and postponing or rescheduled others.
Alaska’s 7 day rolling average case rate is shocking – 667 new cases per 100K residents. Almost 52% of new cases are among people age 10 to 39. Officials reported there are only 14 ICU beds available in the entire state.
Idaho
Idaho officials announced this morning that all hospitals are now operating under crisis standards of care. This is the first time a full state has had to make such drastic measures. Hospital officials made public appeals for weeks as the condition deteriorated, but Idaho’s own state public health officials and lieutenant governor actively worked to undermine those efforts.
“It’s just nonstop trying to find placement for these patients and the care that they need,” said Brian Whitlock, the president and CEO of the Idaho Hospital Association, who noted that hospitals across the state are struggling with the same issue. “It really is a minute-by-minute assessment of where beds are open, and hospitals saying we don’t know where we’re going to put the next one.”
Health leaders in Washington state said that they are attempting to help their neighbors states, but they are keeping a close eye on their own bed space.
It’s become an ethical challenge, as Washington has been aggressive in its Covid safety measures while Idaho’s state leaders have done little to address the latest surge.
Dr. Doug White, the director of the University of Pittsburgh’s Program on Ethics and Decision Making in Critical Illness, said that while Washington’s health care services may feel a moral obligation to help, the need for action falls to Idaho’s state government.
Oregon
Ten months after making comments at a Stop the Steal Rally, and his refusal to wear masks even around patients, Dr. Steven LaTulippe has had his medical license revoked. His license has been temporarily suspended, but state officials made a change in his status today.
[SAMMAMISH, Wash.] – (MTN) An examination of the Epik Software data released by Anonymous has security experts concluding the claims made by the shadowy organization are true, and it will be a devastating blow. “This is the Panama Papers for hate groups,” a researcher told us after reviewing just part of the 180GB of information retrieved. “In all my years, I have never seen a breach of a domain registrar to this scale. The lack of security to protect this information is breathtaking.”
To understand the significance of the hack and the role Epik has played in platforming hate speech, the history of the company and its founder needs to be examined.
A Brief History of Epik and its CEO, Rob Monster
Epik, located in Sammamish, Washington, was founded in 2009 by Rob Monster, the CEO of the domain registrar and web hosting company. For the first ten years, the company largely remained out of the public eye. Mr. Monster (that is his real name) was known locally for founding a market research company, where the board of directors ousted him and serving as an interim CEO of Digitaltown. In closer circles, Monster’s extreme views on race were an open secret. Everything changed on November 5, 2018.
Gab, a Twitter alternative used by extremists and far-right groups, was thrust into the national spotlight after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting on October 27, 2018, which left 11 dead and 6 wounded. The massacre was carried out by Robert Gregory Bowers, 46 at the time. Bowers had used Gab to threaten Jews and posted his plans on the site shortly before the massacre happened. It received messages of encouragement and support, and site admins did nothing to warn authorities under the banner of protecting free speech. GoDaddy was the domain registrar for Gab and terminated their services, knocking Gab off the Internet. Epik became the registrar in November, and Gab returned.
In 2019 Epik made a series of acquisitions, including BitMitigate, a cybersecurity firm, and Sibyl Systems, a company providing hosting services for the website Gab. Little is known about Sibyl Systems, including the nation the company is located in or its services. In August of 2019, after 8chan lost its domain and hosting providers, Epik became the site’s host provider.
8Chan, a popular site among extremists and adherents of QAnon, was taken offline after the August 3, 2019, El Paso Walmart shooting that left 23 dead and 23 wounded. Patrick Wood Crusius, 21 at the time, posted a manifesto on 8Chan. That decision proved to be a bridge too far for many service providers and ultimately for Epik itself.
In the 12 months that followed, Amazon Web Services limited some services while Linode and PayPal severed ties with the company. PayPal terminated their relationship with Epik over concerns that the company had the potential to use the PayPal platform for money laundering and tax evasion. Epik created a currency for its customers called “Masterbucks,” which used PayPal as the backbone. In the end, Epik dropped 8chan.
Rob Monster became a cause celebre among Republicans, political conservatives, and those with more extreme views. Epik cemented itself as the domain and host provider for the far-right, and in January 2021, rescued the Twitter alternative Parler, another online platform used by political extremists.
Monster has described himself as a Chrisitan and a libertarian, while others describe a man who has become increasingly radicalized in the last five years. A recent article in Bloomberg Business Week about Nick Lim, the founder of VanwaTech, which provides technical and hosting services to some of the most extreme websites on the planet, highlighted the relationship between Lim and Monster.
“At that point, Epik had spent years in the mundane business of nonideological domain registration, and Rob Monster, its awkwardly named chief executive officer, had a reputation for personally handling customer service calls and posting on arcane industry forums. But Monster had also been radicalized during the Trump years, subjecting his staff to florid conspiracy theories in staff meetings and spending more and more of his energy on politically charged work at Epik.”
“Around this time, Lim and Monster began collaborating. It’s not clear how they met, but they quickly grew close, with Monster becoming a kind of mentor to Lim, according to Joseph Peterson, then Epik’s director of operations.”
In the years that followed, Epik’s business relationship with Gab was a honeypot for like thinkers. The Republican Party and its most extreme supporters, churches, hate groups, individuals, and platforms that support extremists rushed to become clients of Epik. Those decisions are going to prove to be very costly.
The Anonymous hack of Epik
On September 11, 2021, a Texas GOP website, texasgop.org, was hacked by Anonymous. The hack was done in response to a recently passed Texas anti-abortion law, the most restrictive in the United States. While the hack was schadenfreude fodder on social media, for Anonymous it was a lot more. It was the first shot over the bow of Epik, the domain registrar for texasgop.org.
On Monday, Anonymous reported that they had hacked Epik and released 180GB of data in a press release. Anonymous claimed they had 10 years of information in the release, including all domain purchases, domain transfers, whois history, DNS changes, mail forwarders, payment history (no credit cards), account credentials including passwords, and GitHub repositories. Our researchers’ conclusion last night? It’s true, all of it.
Reporter Steven Monacelli broke the hacking news on Twitter. A few hours later, Rob Monster replied to the tweet and called the hack “a nothing burger.”
Epik’s own website was hacked late Monday night, with an FAQ entry mocking CEO Rob Monster. The FAQ entry was public for hours before being removed.
Epik website was hacked on Monday night with an FAQ entry about the Anonymous hack
Last night, researchers were pouring through the information. Among the thousands of innocuous sites for yoga studios and home renovations, the information on who is behind some of the most notorious websites on the Internet was in plain view. Nazi sites, anti-Semitic sites, QAnon, misinformation on COVID, elections, and doxing sites. Sites that illegally sell guns, drugs and are involved in human trafficking and prostitution.
Epik customers who used the company’s anonymizing services were left unprotected. Although the information was stored in a different database, it was easily cross-referenced to the list of domain owners. Incredibly, none of the data was “encrypted at rest.”
The reaction has already been swift. Joey Camp, an agent provocateur from Colorado, was one of the first individuals outed from the hack. Within hours he has already issued threats online and is making claims the hack isn’t real. Not only is it real, but the information shows the list of websites Camp owns, including ones that aren’t as openly attached to his personal brand. A cluster of dozens of pro-Trump websites is connected back to a medical doctor in California.
Far-right extremist, Joey Camp, wants to dox me because I made a video about the Epik Hack that he claims is so fake that he feels he need to dox anyone who reports on it.
Not only do I have nothing to do with the hack, I'm not even a journalist. So, why so defensive? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/lJWdqscRN0
A security expert we talked to concluded, “It would be like locking the door of the bank at night but leaving the alarm off and the vault open.” For Republican leadership, religious conservatives, and the people backing misinformation, hate, and extremists websites, this is only the beginning of the problems that will lie ahead. Passwords can be changed and websites hardened to prevent transfers or attacks, but the who’s who behind online hate is available to the world.
Knowledge is the best tool to fight against fear. A wise person chooses to be informed so they can make sound decisions. To join the fight against COVID misinformation, you can share this update through your social media platform of choice.
[KING COUNTY, Wash.] – (MTN) Hospitalizations have dropped 9% in Washington state from the record high set on September 9, but resources remained stretched to the limit with hospitals struggling with a crush of patients.
The number of schools in the Lake Washington and Northshore School Districts with COVID cases continues to grown.
The Washington State Department of Health has requested 1,200 medical professionals to reinforce hospitals. Health officials in Spokane express outrage that the Spokane County Fair is ongoing, with reports of only 25% of people wearing masks indoors.
Skagit County is restricting COVID testing, and Washingtonians are complaining about a lack of access to get tested for COVID in Eastern and Southwest Washington.
The planned protest at Skyview High School in Vancouver was a bust today.
There remains confusion and disagreement between the FDA, CDC, and the Biden Administration about the start of general booster shots for people who received the Pfizer vaccine.
In the misinformation section, we explain HEK-293 and the use of fetal stem cells in the development, testing, and production of medications and vaccines. If you’re trying to get a religious exemption because of HEK-293, you should read up on the other medications that have used the cells.
Today’s data shows a continued downward trend in new cases. However, there are concerns that new cases are being under-reported in Eastern and Southwest Washington. In the South Central Hospital Region, which includes Benton, Franklin, Klickitat, Walla Walla, and Yakima counties, new cases are 854.8 per 100K people while the Central Hospital Region, which represents King County, had a rate of 295.5.
Percent of Total Population Fully Vaccinated
Average 14-Day New Case Rate (unadjusted)
50.00% or above (12 counties)
496.3
40.00% to 49.99% (18 counties)
736.8 (down)
27.30% to 39.99% (9 counties)
764.6 (down)
14-Day New COVID Cases per 100K average by Vaccination Rate, Not Adjusted for Population
Through September 14, Washington’s statewide 14-day rolling average was 493.1 COVID cases per 100K, which is the first time since August 24 the state average has been below 500. Lincoln (1,303.2 per 100K), Franklin (1,192.6 per 100K), and Stevens (1,145.5 per 100K) reported an extreme number of new cases. Counties in the 800.0 to 999.9 per 100K range include Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Clallam, Cowlitz, Douglas, Grant, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Okanagan, and Pend Oreille.
Last week Yakima County reported the closures of outdoor testing centers due to severe wildfire smoke creating low air quality. Additionally, there was the Labor Day holiday week in the last 14 days, and most testing centers were closed on Sunday and Monday. Questions were raised about the limited availability of testing centers in Eastern and Southwest Washington today by several reporters during the Washington State Department of Health press conference held today.
Washington State Secretary of Health Dr. Umair Shah said there were “no imminent plans” to reopen mass testing sites, but indicated they were working with local and federal partners.
“We have added community-based testing sites but not huge testing sites,” Dr. Shah said.
The Washington State Department of Health reports a data backlog for test positivity, with the published number 14 days old. According to Johns Hopkins University Medicine, the positivity rate for the last 30 days is 13.33%, and over the previous 7 days, 14.36%. These numbers indicate the state is under testing, and the jump of the previous 7 days rolling average to over 14% is a sign there is an increase in under testing.
The Department of Health changed how they are reporting Cases, Hospitalizations, and Testing by Age, so we can’t provide an indication on if these numbers are an increase or decrease from previous days. If you are comparing it to previous days you should not interpret this data as indicating a massive jump in numbers.
Age Group
7-Day Case Rate
7-Day Hospitalization Rate
Ages 0-11
212.0
0.7
Ages 12-19
249.6
2.1
Ages 20-34
257.6
7.9
Ages 35-49
233.7
13.1
Ages 50-64
173.3
19.6
Ages 65-79
127.5
26.9
Ages 80+
129.7
44.6
7-day case rate and 7-day hospitalization rate is per 100K within the age group – the target for 7-day case rate is <25.0, but there are other factors such as vaccination rates within the age groups, how many total tests within the 7-day period, and the positivity rate within each age group
Skagit County announces restrictions on COVID testing
Citing an increasing number of people who live outside of Skagit county, and people seeking testing for work or school, officials announced new restrictions on who can access the Skagit County Public Health test site.
Officials reported they were performing 400 tests a day, and half of the people being tested didn’t live in Skagit County. On Monday, several people were turned away because they weren’t a resident of the county or did not have any COVID symptoms.
Spokane hospital Chief Medical Officer slams officials for having Spokane County Fair
Providence Health Care, which announced yesterday they were stopping all non-emergency surgeries held a press conference to discuss the current state of Spokane hospitals. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dan Getz expressed outrage about the Spokane County Fair being held.
Spokane County Commissioner Josh Kerns released a statement about the decision to keep the fair going.
“Our community has had so many events taken from them over the last eighteen months. The fair staff has worked closely with the Washington State Department of Health and the Spokane Regional Health District to make the Spokane County Interstate Fair as safe as possible. Large events have been happening across the State of Washington including the Washington State Fair, College Football games, and professional sporting events.”
Providence and Sacred Heart have a combined 150 COVID patients under their care – including 29 from Idaho. Of the 18 COVID patients on ventilators, none of them are vaccinated.
Anti-vaccine protest planned at Skyview High School in Vancouver is a bust
The Seattle Truth Network, in coordination with Wake Up Washington, is planning an anti-vaccination event on September 25 at Rooster’s Bakery and Cafe in Woodinville.
Washington state requests 1,200 additional medically trained people to come to the state
“Washington state has requested 1,200 personnel to help our system,” Dr. Scott Lindquist, State Epidemiologist for Communicable Disease for the Washington Department of Health said. Nineteen months of relentless demand drove many skilled medical workers to walk away from being hospitalists through early retirement, moving to private practice, or taking more lucrative jobs as a traveling healthcare provider.
“Our healthcare workers are truly stressed now.”
The question of looming vaccination mandates for healthcare workers at both a state and federal level was raised. “Last year before we even had vaccines in our state, all of us said if we just had a tool to fight this pandemic. As a country, we did everything we can to develop a vaccine,” Washington state Secretary of Health Dr. Umair Shah said.
“Vaccines are free they are safe they are effective.”
“When we go through all these efforts – when you hear certain people saying I’m OK with losing my job, we hope you will reconsider this.”
Travel Advisories
We recommend avoiding all travel to Spokane, Yakima, Klickitat, Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla counties, along with the states of Alaska and Idaho. Hospital resources in these regions are so constrained that you may receive inadequate care if you experience a medical emergency.
Thank you
Thank you to our new subscribers and those of you who have made one-time contributions. On behalf of the entire team, thank you for helping us keep the lights on!
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Vaccination
September 20 is just 5 days away, and there is still no final decision or guidance on what a vaccine booster shot program for the general public would look like. Today the staff of the Food and Drug Administration deferred on providing their recommendation until September 17. The agency released a 23-page document, Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting, September 17, 2021.
“Factors supporting licensure of a booster dose should consider the effectiveness of primary vaccination with COMIRNATY over time and against circulating variants, the effectiveness (and its duration) of booster vaccination in preventing important COVID-19-related outcomes in individuals who have already received a primary vaccination series, the dynamics of the pandemic in the United States, and the risks of booster vaccination in the general population or in certain subpopulations.”
“Some observational studies have suggested declining efficacy of COMIRNATY over time against symptomatic infection or against the Delta variant, while others have not. However, overall, data indicate that currently US-licensed or authorized COVID-19 vaccines still afford protection against severe COVID-19 disease and death in the United States. There are many potentially relevant studies, but FDA has not independently reviewed or verified the underlying data or their conclusions. Some of these studies, including data from the vaccination program in Israel, will be summarized during the September 17, 2021 VRBPAC meeting.”
Booster shot approval would only apply to recipients of the Pfizer vaccine if the program moves forward on September 20.
“This is only one estimate, but we do believe this means as you look toward the fall and winter, at minimum we expect the estimated impact of waning immunity would be 600,000 additional cases of COVID-19,” Moderna President Stephen Hoge told investors.
The research showed that people who received the vaccination in 2020, had a statistically higher infection rate than those who received their shots in 2021. Data from multiple studies and the CDC indicates that Moderna is highly effective against the Delta variant.
“The first six months are great, but you can’t count on that being stable out to a year and beyond,” Mr Hoge said.
Finally, the Nicki Minaj kerfuffle over the cousin’s friend with the swollen testicles allegedly from the COVID vaccine (no, it doesn’t do that) reached such a fevered pitch, an exasperated Dr. Terrence Deyalsingh, the Health Minister of Trinidad & Tobago made a statement during the nation’s COVID update.
#BREAKING – Trinidad & Tobago Health Minister Dr. Terrence Deyalsingh responds to swollen testicle claim made by Trinidad-born entertainer @NICKIMINAJ; says there is no such reported case in Trinidad & Tobago (TTT) pic.twitter.com/NNsc9EUTKP
King County, Washington is reporting over 85% of age eligible residents are vaccinated with at least one dose. The highest rates of positivity are in areas with low vaccination rates statewide. The FDA has provided full approval of the Pfizer vaccine for anyone 16 and over.
COVID vaccines are free for anyone over 12 years old, and no appointment is necessary at most locations. Lyft and Hopelink provide free transportation, and KinderCare, the Learning Care Group, and the YMCA offer free childcare during vaccination appointments or recuperation.
According to the DoH COVID Dashboard, 23.0% of all acute care patients hospitalized in Washington have COVID. A hospital system caring for this many COVID-positive patients in acute care is considered to be under “severe stress.” ICUs are at 91.9% of capacity statewide, with 35.9% of ICU patients fighting COVID. This is a new record for patients in ICU and the percentage of patients with COVID.
The hospital admission rate Epidemiologic Curve dashboard is not working for the second day in a row. The Department of Health reported there were 1,636 COVID patients statewide on September 14 and 266 on ventilators. This is the third day of decline, and total hospitalized patients are down 9% from the September 9 peak.
Dr. Scott Lindquist, State Epidemiologist for Communicable Disease for the Washington Department of Health talked about the trend in the state numbers. “We are starting to see a downward trend, but I would be cautious about this,” he said, adding “It is encouraging to see this stalling out.”
Despite the improvement, the hospital system in Washington state remains on a razor’s edge. “All of our resource hospitals are over capacity, every one of them,” said Dr. Steve Mitchell, Medical Director, WMCC, and Emergency Department at Harborview Medical Center.
“All of them are going through incredible lengths to care for patients. They are also taking staff that don’t normally work in ICUs and extending the staff into critical care units.”
“When our ICUs and our alternative ICUs are full…they back up into our emergency departments. The trickle-down from that is patients wait for a long period time waiting for a bed and ambulances keep coming. Those same ambulances can’t unload into our emergency department so they then become unavailable for other emergency calls.”
“I want you to hear this, this is not just my hospital, it is every resource hospital throughout our state.”
Dr. Mitchell also discussed patient transfers and the growing challenges to balance resources across Washington. “Over 1,000 requests since July 1 from hospitals who have been unable to place their patients from small rural critical access hospitals to a location where they can intervene and fix those patients.”
“Just yesterday there were 2 patients that both had severe COVID in far North Central Washington. After many hours of searching…we found that they could accept them in King County.”
“So sad to see the younger age of the people in our critical care unit,” Dr. Michell said as he talked about 4 critical patients in their 20’s under treatment for COVID at Harborview Medical Center.
Of the four, one had very recently died, another was on ECMO, and the last two were being proned to help them breathe. Three of the four were unvaccinated. The vaccinated patient is severely immunocompromised.
– Alcott Elementary (1*) – Carson Elementary (2*) – Dickinson Elementary (1*) – Eastlake High (1*) – Einstein Elementary (1*) – Ella Baker Elementary (1*) – Robert Frost Elementary (9) – Juanita Elementary (2*) – Juanita High School (37) – Peter Kirk Elementary (1*) – Redmond Elementary (2*) – Redmond Middle School (1*) – Rose Hill Elementary (1*) – Rose Hill/Stella Schola Middle School (1*) – Thoreau Elementary (4)
– Robert Frost (?) – Kamiakin Middle School (140) – Mark Twain Elementary (3*)
Northshore
YELLOW
– Arrowhead Elementary (10) – Bothell High School (35**) – Canyon Creek Elementary (16) – Canyon Park Middle School (5) – Cottage Lake Elementary (12) – Crystal Springs Elementary (14) – East Ridge Elementary (12) – Fernwood Elementary (7) – Frank Love Elementary (20) – Hollywood Hills Elementary (3) – Inglemoor High School (5) – Innovation Lab High School (3) – Kenmore Elementary (5) – Kenmore Middle School (37**) – Kokanee Elementary (20) – Maywood Hills Elementary (10) – North Creek High School (13**) – Northshore Middle School (7) – Ruby Bridges Elementary (4) – Secondary Academy for Success (1) – Shelton View Elementary (18**) – Skyview Middle School (71) – Sunrise Elementary (19) – Timbercrest Middle School (23) – Westhill Elementary (6) – Woodin Elementary (4) – Woodinville High School (18) – Woodmore Elementary (18**)
Under Investigation
Local Districts Scorecard – * indicates positive cases only ** indicates 5 or more confirmed positive cases
The Lake Washington School District data hasn’t been updated since Friday, but we do have a parent report that a classroom has been quarantined at Robert Frost Elementary.
Northshore School District now has 5 schools reporting 5 or more confirmed COVID cases with an expanding number of students in quarantine across the district.
Kirkland-Bellevue-Woodinville
No update
National Round-Up
Johns Hopkins University Cumulitaive Case Tracker is reporting 143,895 new cases and 1,823 deaths nationwide.
To put that into perspective consider this. Lumen Field where the Seahawks and Sounders FC play can seat 72,000 people. If the stadium was full for a game, 144 random fans would not leave the stadium alive.
Although the national rate is 1 in 500, for King County, it is 1 in 1,221. The significant improvement over the national average is due to several factors including early action at the start of the outbreak, lockdowns, social distancing, mask wear, a gradual return to normalcy in the spring of 2021, and a high vaccination rate.
Alaska
Alaska shattered every previous COVID record today reporting 1,095 new cases along with a record number of hospitalizations, ICU patients, and patients on ventilators. Yesterday the largest hospital in the state had to move to crisis standards of care. The impact of the decision is starting to ripple across the vast and remote state.
Nearly all hospitals are struggling, and each is grappling with how best to respond to unsustainable patient levels, Dr. Anne Zink, Alaska’s chief medical officer, said Wednesday.
“They’re almost all at a crisis level right now,” she said. For smaller facilities, enacting crisis standards of care may not always make the most sense based on the types of resources and protocols already in place.
“We’ve had increasing challenges accessing particularly things like (kidney) dialysis” and other similarly specialized care that is only available at a few hospitals in Anchorage, Zink said.
Alabama
The good news is the number of patients hospitalized with COVID continues to decline, but within those numbers, there is a dark reality. Dr. Don Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association, said Monday that he’s “hopeful but not confident yet that things are beginning to improve,” and noted that “one of the reasons our hospitalization numbers appear to be stable to declining is because we’ve had a pretty substantial daily death count. We’re reporting more than 40 deaths a day now for almost three weeks.”
As of today, 84% of the 2,355 hospitalized COVID patients are unvaccinated, including 761 in the ICU. The state has 558 patients on ventilators, with a national survival rate of just 20% to 30%.
Arkansas
COVID hospitalizations have declined for more than a week, but the state is seeing a similar trend to Alabama. ICU cases have increased by 18 within the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 450. According to the ADH data, this is the first time ICU cases have increased in five days.
Arizona
Attorney General Mark Brnovich filed a 14-page complaint in federal court that seeks to invalidate President Biden’s vaccine requirements for federal workers and large companies. In the complaint, Brnovich makes a false claim on the process of undocumented immigrants as part of his legal argument.
“In a nutshell: unauthorized aliens will not be subject to any vaccination requirements even when released directly into the United States (where most will remain), while roughly a hundred million U.S. citizens will be subject to unprecedented vaccination requirements,” the state told the court. “This reflects an unmistakable — and unconstitutional — brand of favoritism in favor of unauthorized aliens.”
Immigrations and Customs Enforcement have contracted agencies to FEMA to provide health inspection to undocumented immigrants who will be held or released into the United States, this includes COVID testing and vaccinations. So far in 2021, almost 1.3 million people have been processed along the U.S. border.
After months of complaints from local, county, and federal officials, Florida is providing COVID death data at a county level again. People on both sides of the mask and vaccination argument have lamented not having access to the data to serve as proof points for the need, or lack of need for masks in schools, as one example.
Florida new cases continue to decline and are now 45% of peak levels, hovering between 11,000 and 12,000 reported a day. Hospitalizations are down from a peak of over 17,000 to 10,979 reported today. 2,673 are in the ICU. The state of Florida does not report how many patients are on ventilators.
Lisa Wilson of Belle Glade, Florida is a tireless advocate of vaccination who even went door to door to fight misinformation and talk to people about getting vaccinated. She persuaded pastors in church to advocate getting vaccinated, along with friends, neighbors, and family. Despite all her efforts, COVID took a terrible toll.
In the last three weeks, Wilson lost 6 relatives, all of them unvaccinated. Wilson remains baffled about why her family members so steadfastly refused to get vaccinated.
“In my grandmother’s case, I think some of her children advised her not to do it,” Wilson said. “They said she was too old, that it wasn’t safe, that she never left the house, anyway.”
The last time she talked to her uncle during a Facetime chat from his hospital bed, he told her he wished he’d followed her advice.
“Tell all of our family to get vaccinated. It’s horrible. It hurts,” she said he cried, as he gasped for air.
She said she couldn’t bring herself to talk to her grandmother on Facetime. When she took her grandmother to the hospital, doctors said her prognosis was grim.
“I didn’t want to see her with tubes running everywhere and watch her struggling to breathe,” Wilson said. “Other grandkids did it and they regretted it.”
“Which is about a seven-fold increase than it had been even in previous waves in this pandemic,” state epidemiologist Cherie Drenzek said during a Board of Public Health meeting.
With a 240% increase of COVID-19 cases among children since July, Georgia’s students are at the center of the current surge.
“The magnitude of this, of the number of cases here in this age group among school children, is very significant,” Drenzek said.
Drenzek said the current surge has caused more than 100 recent outbreaks in schools statewide since July 4.
Hawaii
After standing at the edge of an angry COVID volcano, Hawaii appears to have reached a peak.
Lt. Gov. Josh Green said there were 448 people hospitalized with COVID on Sept. 3. The state is now down to 346.
But he added Hawaii health officials won’t know for sure until at least Friday. That’s when they’ll get a complete picture of how much the virus spread over Labor Day weekend.
“I suspect our cases have plateaued. And our hospitalizations should drop in the next two weeks. Unless we get a surprise,” Green said.
And while cases are going down, some facilities are still struggling to meet patient needs.
Idaho
The northern half of Idaho continues to operate in crisis standards of care and officials seem pessimistic that the southern half of the state can avoid reaching the same situation.
“Our cases continue to increase,” said Elke Shaw-Tulloch, public health administrator for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. “The flow of sick people into hospitals continues to increase. It’s incredibly high and the stress on the hospitals is very real.”
The IDHW says a record number of people are being hospitalized with Covid right now. If that doesn’t change soon, hospitals in southern Idaho could have to implement crisis standards of care.
“The number of children 12 to 18 that are positive, is greater this week than last week it is growing at an accelerated rate and our internal data shows a positivity rate of 20%, which is incredibly high,” said pediatrician and CEO of Primary Health Medical Group, Doctor David Peterman.
“I’m incredibly disappointed and to a certain degree disheartened because we know that something as simple as having our children wear masks in school, and teachers and staff, we can slow the spread of covid,” he said.
That’s unlikely as Dr. Ryan Cole, who called the COVID vaccination “needle rape,” works with the American Frontline Doctors, and considers masks useless, is one off the leading health officials in the Gem State.
The CDH is Idaho’s biggest health authority, covering Ada, Boise, Elmore, and Valley counties. Its board is elected by 12 commissioners, three from each county.
Cole made it onto the board thanks to a backlash against CDH restrictions which propelled coronavirus skeptics into positions of power.
In Louisana, the number of COVID patients has plummeted in the last four weeks, while morgues and funeral homes struggle to keep up with the recently deceased. Just like in Alabama, the good news of declining hospitalizations is masking a grim reality.
He said morgues have become so crowded, hospitals will sometimes call his home even before a patient dies to make sure someone can come pick up the body quickly and make space for the next.
On any given day, Cobb and Lawson host up to 10 funerals, back-to-back, with practically no time in between. Often they’re so busy attending to grieving families, they forget to eat.
“Given Labor Day activities, I think that all health care providers probably have their fingers crossed and are hoping for the best but not assuming that will hold once we get at the requisite days past Labor Day,” Patti Davis, President of the Oklahoma State Hospital Association said.
Dr. Woody Jenkins, in Stillwater, said their hospital capacity is maxed out. “Overall, our patients are younger and sicker than the last surge,” Jenkins said. “The length of stays are longer, to past 20 days, and some have been on the ventilators for over 10 days.”
Another major concern, according to Jenkins, is losing nursing staff to mental health strain and fatigue.
“We must find a way out of this darkness and navigate toward brighter skies,” he said.
“Our battle really isn’t with the district and the teachers or even our superintendent. We really want our school district to come in compliance with the law and keep healthy kids in school,” said Brian Shellem, who filed the lawsuit with five other parents.
Kaiser Permanente is offering a 1% raise across the board, and a 1% lump sum raise for each year of the contract. That rate of pay increase doesn’t even keep up with inflation going as far back as 2010.
Kaiser says to address future costs and affordability, it is, “proposing a market-based compensation structure for those hired in 2023 and beyond.”
The union sees that as unacceptable.
“The current proposal on the table is that they want to put in a two-tier wage system where new hires will be paid less than what we are paid, meaning that our work that we perform–it’s not worth what we’re currently being paid to do,” said Holt.
Misinformation
A growing strategy among those seeking an exemption from receiving the COVID vaccine on religious grounds is a firmly held religious belief against abortion and a belief that life starts at conception. The argument then becomes because fetal stem cells were used in the testing or development of the COVID vaccines, it is against one’s belief to accept the vaccine.
Of eight COVID vaccines evaluated, two used fetal stem cells in the development, with one of those distributed in the United States. The Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines were tested on fetal stem cells, and the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was used during the production of the vaccine.
Ha! I got you! Not so fast.
The cells used come from a genome known as HEK-293. The original 293 cells were derived in 1973 from the kidney of an aborted human embryo of unknown parenthood by transformation with sheared Adenovirus 5 DNA. After many attempts, cell growth took off only several months after the isolation of a single transformed clone. The cells used today are thousands of generations old and are clones of the original cells gathered in 1973.
They’re still aborted cells! Test tube or not!
This is where the argument falls apart. HEK-293 cells have been used in either the development, testing, or production of a long list of medications.
If you’ve “done your research” and have been using “alternative treatments” as preventatives or treatment for COVID, you better sit down. Zithromax, Hydroxychloroquine, and Ivermectin have all been tested as part of their production and development using HEK-293 cells. Other common vaccinations include Rubella, part of the MMR, and the chickenpox and shingles vaccines. If you used the monoclonal antibody treatment Regeneron, you’ve also used a drug developed with HEK-293 cells.
Additionally, as far back as 2003, the Catholic Church released a statement specifically addressing the use of HEK-293 cells for the development of medications. The Jewish and Islamic faiths have made similar statements and years before the development of the COVID vaccine.
If you’ve ever taken any of these drugs or vaccines, especially the prescription drugs, or your social media is covered with claims praising the use of Hydroxychloroquine or Ivermectin, your religious exemption is probably in jeopardy.
Tylenol / Acetaminophen
Advil / Motrin / Ibuprofen
Aleve / Naproxen
Pseudoephedrine / Sudafed / SudoGest / Suphedrine (and we can add Meth to that list)
Knowledge is the best tool to fight against fear. A wise person chooses to be informed so they can make sound decisions. To join the fight against COVID misinformation, you can share this update through your social media platform of choice.
[KING COUNTY, Wash.] – (MTN) Although Washington reached a grim milestone of 7,000 COVID-related deaths today, data on new cases indicated that the Evergreen State is reaching a peak. The divide between the most and least vaccinated counties continues to widen, and the number of patients in the ICU reached a critical level statewide.
The Lake Washington School District expands how much COVID data they are sharing and in the Northshore School District, a concerning trend has emerged at three schools.
Hospitals in Spokane are suspending all non-emergency surgeries as they struggle to support the lower vaccinated counties in Eastern Washington and the surge in Idaho. In Bellingham, officials report they are inching closer to crisis standards.
Edmonds canceled Oktoberfest for the second year in a row.
Almost 4,800 state employees have requested a vaccination exemption, about 8% of the 60,000 person workforce. Protesters are coming to Vancouver, Washington’s Skyview High School on Wednesday despite a court order, and they are bringing infamous Seattle street preacher Matthew with them.
The mayor of Puyallup is started a fundraiser to show appreciation to hospital workers.
We have expanded our travel advisory to include Spokane County and the state of Alaska, with the latter having the largest hospital move to “crisis standards of care.”
In the misinformation section, we discuss swollen testicles and Betadine.
Today’s data provided a strong indication that Washington state has hit a peak while demonstrating the effectiveness of vaccines. In the South Central Hospital Region, which includes Benton, Franklin, Klickitat, Walla Walla, and Yakima counties, new cases are 883.3 per 100K people, essentially unchanged from yesterday. In comparison, the Central Hospital Region, which represents King County, had a rate of 295.4. In addition, for counties that are 50% fully vaccinated or higher, the 14-day rolling average of new cases dropped below 500 for the first time since we started tracking.
Percent of Total Population Fully Vaccinated
Average 14-Day New Case Rate (unadjusted)
50.00% or above (12 counties)
494.0 (down)
40.00% to 49.99% (18 counties)
747.0 (down)
27.30% to 39.99% (9 counties)
781.4 (down)
14-Day New COVID Cases per 100K average by Vaccination Rate, Not Adjusted for Population
Through September 13, Washington’s statewide 14-day rolling average was 500.8 COVID cases per 100K, which is within the 500 to 535 range the state has bounced between. Lincoln (1,294.1 per 100K), Franklin (1,170.9 per 100K), and Stevens (1,121.5 per 100K) reported an extreme number of new cases. Counties in the 800.0 to 999.9 per 100K range include Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Clallam, Cowlitz, Douglas, Grant, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Okanagan, and Pend Oreille. Although Yakima County fell off of the report, its case rate is 799.4 per 100K.
The Washington State Department of Health reports a data backlog for test positivity, with the published number 14 days old. According to Johns Hopkins University Medicine, the positivity rate for the last 30 days is 13.40%, and over the previous 7 days, 13.67%. These numbers indicate the state is under testing. Further, there has been little change in the positivity rate for almost a month.
The 7-day case rate was up for birth to 34 years old, and down for 80 and over. Hospitalizations were mostly flat, with a slight increase for adolescents from 12 to 19 years old.
Age Group
7-Day Case Rate
7-Day Hospitalization Rate
Ages 0-11
34.0 (up)
0.1
Ages 12-19
26.3 (up)
0.2 (up)
Ages 20-34
59.1 (up)
1.5
Ages 35-49
50.2
2.5
Ages 50-64
37.4
3.9
Ages 65-79
18.7
3.7
Ages 80+
5.0 (down)
1.8
7-day case rate and 7-day hospitalization rate is per 100K within the age group – the target for 7-day case rate is <25.0, but there are other factors such as vaccination rates within the age groups, how many total tests within the 7-day period, and the positivity rate within each age group
The USA Today COVID Tracker reported 63 deaths on Tuesday and Washington state crossed a grim milestone of 7,000 COVID-related deaths since February 29, 2020.
Edmonds Oktoberfest canceled due to concerns about COVID
This change was made as a safety precaution given the current COVID-19 environment. The rate of new COVID cases reached an all-time high last week at 464 per 100,000 people, according to data released Tuesday, Sept. 7, by the Snohomish Health District.
“This decision was not made lightly,” said Maggie Peterson, Edmonds Rotary President. “We very much want Edmonds Oktoberfest to be a family-friendly traditional event but the current rise in COVID-19 cases, combined with the start of the school year, creates a situation where there would be many vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals co-mingling. We are looking forward to bringing back Oktoberfest (or similar event) including the Kids Korner and all corresponding fun activities in 2022!”
Edmonds Oktoberfest Founder and Committee Co-Chair David Kaufer added, “We are dependent on volunteers to run this event, with more than 170 volunteer slots identified. We do not feel comfortable placing them, as well as attendees and other participants, in a situation where they may be at a higher risk of catching or transmitting this highly contagious variant.”
Those who have purchased tickets for Edmonds Oktoberfest may request a refund by emailing david@edmondsrotary.com.
Almost 4,800 state employees ask to be exempt from vaccine mandate
State employees not represented by the WFSE have until October 4 to receive the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine to be in compliance with the October 18 deadline if they have not received their first dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines. Certain employees with the WFSE could go past that date if they meet certain requirements set in the compromise ratified last week.
Anti-vaccine protest planned at Skyview High School in Vancouver – again
The group Waking Up Washington is planning a protest at Skyview High School in Vancouver, Washington on Wednesday, and they are bringing infamous Seattle street preacher Matthew with them. If you have ever been to a protest, rally, concert, march, parade, or large sporting event in Seattle, you have likely heard Matthew.
This action is being driven by 14-year old Melanie Gabriel, a student at the school who was attempting to get a 504 exemption to not have to wear a mask. The anti-vaccination activity in Oregon and Washington is largely run by a handful of people. Michelle Morales-Walker is the most prominent voice and face of the movement. She is supported by Joey Gibson of Patriot Prayer, Ammon Bundy, Washougal Women, and Palmer Davis of La Center.
The group was withdrawn from a planned protest in Olympia on Saturday, due to a Proud Boys rally planned for the same day.
The Seattle Truth Network, in coordination with Wake Up Washington, is planning an anti-vaccination event on September 25 at Rooster’s Bakery and Cafe in Woodinville.
Puyallup Mayor organizing fund raiser for employees at MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital
Door created the GoFundMe page on Sept. 2 and had $6,050 as of Sept. 10. She thought she could show support for the employees by raising funds to give each of them a $5 Starbucks gift card.
Editor’s Opinion: Not directed at Mayor Door, however, most medical workers would prefer for everyone to wear a mask and get vaccinated so they don’t show up in the emergency department sick due to COVID. It isn’t a lack of gratitude. They’re exhausted and see this current wave as preventable.
Travel Advisories
We recommend avoiding all travel to Spokane, Yakima, Klickitat, Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla counties, along with the states of Alaska and Idaho. Hospital resources in these regions are so constrained that you may receive inadequate care if you experience a medical emergency.
Thank you
Thank you to our new subscribers and those of you who have made one-time contributions. On behalf of the entire team, thank you for helping us keep the lights on!
No promotional consideration has been given, or requested from the n95 project or any manufacturer of masks
Vaccination
No update beyond please get vaccinated.
King County, Washington is reporting over 85% of age eligible residents are vaccinated with at least one dose. The highest rates of positivity are in areas with low vaccination rates statewide. The FDA has provided full approval of the Pfizer vaccine for anyone 16 and over.
COVID vaccines are free for anyone over 12 years old, and no appointment is necessary at most locations. Lyft and Hopelink provide free transportation, and KinderCare, the Learning Care Group, and the YMCA offer free childcare during vaccination appointments or recuperation.
According to the DoH COVID Dashboard, 23.1% of all acute care patients hospitalized in Washington have COVID. A hospital system caring for this many COVID-positive patients in acute care is considered to be under “severe stress.” ICUs are at 91.4% of capacity statewide, with 35.6% of ICU patients fighting COVID. This is the highest level of occupancy within Washington state ICUs and the highest percentage of COVID patients under care.
The hospital admission rate Epidemiologic Curve dashboard wasn’t working today. It appears the daily hospitalization rate is in the 160s, which would be close to yesterday. This is another encouraging sign that the state may be hitting a peak. The Department of Health reported there were 1,683 COVID patients statewide on September 13 and 269 on ventilators. Both numbers indicate a decline although we have no way of knowing if the decline was due to fatalities or releases.
We got a response from the Washington State Department of Health on getting data on NICU, PICU, and pediatric COVID cases. The state is working on tracking that data and providing it as either a report or a dashboard. The date of availability was not provided.
News that Washington was still taking transfer patients from out state has created outrage on social media. The Washington State Hospital Association indicated they were taking patients but emphasized it was far fewer than in the past. Additionally, there are some hospital networks that have facilities between Washington and Oregon or Washington and Idaho, and patient transfers within those systems would be normal. In the same press conference, the WHSA indicated that a patient from Spokane was transferred to Idaho.
Everett Providence reported today that they are accepting “two to three” transfer patients a day, mostly from the North Puget Sound region. However, they currently have patients from Alaska, Idaho, and Montana. Officials also pointed out that Snohomish County is sending patients to King County.
– Alcott Elementary (1*) – Carson Elementary (2*) – Dickinson Elementary (1*) – Eastlake High (1*) – Einstein Elementary (1*) – Ella Baker Elementary (1*) – Robert Frost Elementary (9) – Juanita Elementary (2*) – Juanita High School (37) – Peter Kirk Elementary (1*) – Redmond Elementary (2*) – Redmond Middle School (1*) – Rose Hill Elementary (1*) – Rose Hill/Stella Schola Middle School (1*) – Thoreau Elementary (4*)
– Kamiakin Middle School (140) – Mark Twain Elementary (3*)
Northshore
YELLOW
– Arrowhead Elementary (7) – Bothell High School (28**) – Canyon Creek Elementary (12) – Canyon Park Middle School (4) – Cottage Lake Elementary (13) – Crystal Springs Elementary (13) – East Ridge Elementary (3) – Fernwood Elementary (7) – Frank Love Elementary (12) – Hollywood Hills Elementary (3) – Inglemoor High School (3) – Innovation Lab High School (2) – Kenmore Elementary (3) – Kenmore Middle School (31) – Maywood Hills Elementary (6) – North Creek High School (15**) – Ruby Bridges Elementary (4) – Shelton View Elementary (14**) – Skyview Middle School (67) – Sunrise Elementary (18) – Timbercrest Middle School (21) – Westhill Elementary (6) – Woodin Elementary (4) – Woodinville High School (18)
Under Investigation
Local Districts Scorecard – * indicates positive cases only ** indicates 5 or more confirmed positive cases
The Lake Washington School District updated its tracking dashboard providing a better degree of insight on the number of confirmed COVID cases among students and faculty, mirroring the information provided by the Bellevue School District.
Although there are a significant number of impacted schools in the LWSD, there have not been any community transmission outbreaks within the district. The number of impacted schools in BSD declined overnight, and we were able to get more data on quarantines.
The more concerning trend is in the Northshore School District where 3 schools now have 5 or more reported confirmed COVID cases. Bothell High School has 7 confirmed cases between students and faculty, and another 21 in quarantine. Shelton View Elementary has 5 confirmed cases among students and another 9 in quarantine. North Creek High School has 7 confirmed cases among students, and 8 more in quarantine.
Three states have exited the CDC ‘high’ COVID transmission category – Vermont, the most vaccinated state, Connect, the second most vaccinated state, and California, the 16th most vaccinated state.
The Pentagon announced guidance on the vaccination mandate that was established in August for active-duty military. Service members have three months to become fully vaccinated for face discharge from the force. The Marines released a soldier last week for refusing to wear a mask, issuing a general discharge under honorable conditions.
In what could be called ironic, Russian President Vladamir Putin is self-isolating after he was exposed to COVID. Putin who is vaccinated has faced accusations from European and North American nations of backing the spread of COVID misinformation to undermine trust in democratic governments.
Alaska
Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage Alaska, the largest hospital in the state, was forced to move to crisis standards of care on Tuesday. The hospital published a two-page letter explaining why they had to restrict care and start making black tag triage decisions.
“At this time, we feel we have an ethical obligation to be transparent with our community and share with the public the distressing reality of what is happening inside the walls of our hospital. The state’s COVID-19 Dashboard isn’t equipped or designed to demonstrate the intricacies of providing medical care during this unprecedented time. More than 30% of the adult patients hospitalized at Providence have tested positive for COVID-19.
Our caregivers are doing their best, just as they have been for the past 18 months of this pandemic. We believe that the Providence administration has acted in good faith throughout the pandemic, following the guidance of local and national experts to create policies and procedures that protect patients and caregivers.
While we are doing our utmost, we are no longer able to provide the standard of care to each and every patient who needs our help. The acuity and number of patients now exceeds our resources and our ability to staff beds with skilled caregivers, like nurses and respiratory therapists. We have been forced within our hospital to implement crisis standards of care.
What does this mean? In short, we are faced with a situation in which we must prioritize scarce resources and treatments to those patients who have the potential to benefit most. We have been required to develop and enact policies and procedures to ration medical care and treatments, including dialysis and specialized ventilatory support.”
Doctor Kristen Solana Walkinshaw, Chief of Staff indicated that this decision could have a dramatic impact on healthcare across Alaska.
“Nurses here are not leaving because of the vaccine mandates. They’re leaving because they’re overwhelmed by the emotional toll it’s taking,” Gonsette, the Providence hospitalist, said in an interview Tuesday. “Part of it, we all feel it, is because we are not heard. The public either wants to bury their head in the sand or maybe some of them really don’t know what’s going on. Those are the ones we’re trying to reach.”
Colorado
We have avoided reporting on right-wing radio or TV personalities who have become infected or have died from COVID, but Bob Enyart was a special kind of awful. Enyart, a provocateur who gleefully mocked the deaths of AIDS victims, had encouraged his listeners not to get any of the three available COVID-19 vaccines because he claimed they had been tested on “cells of aborted babies.” (Though coronavirus vaccines do not contain fetal cells, Johnson & Johnson used a historic fetal cell line to produce and manufacture its vaccine; Pfizer and Moderna used a fetal cell line in a very early phase to confirm efficacy prior to production.) He also successfully sued the state of Colorado over COVID-related restrictions on church attendance.
Enyart’s wife is still hospitalized with COVID.
Editor’s Note: It is ironic that Mr. Enyart would die after exaggerating the danger AIDS presented to the general population while minimizing the impact of the second pandemic in his lifetime.
Idaho
The situation in Idaho is going from worse to catastrophic. In a media briefing today Idaho Health and Welfare Director Dave Jeppesen reported “Hospitalizations in Southwest, Central and South Central health districts, which includes the Treasure Valley and the Magic Valley, are reaching a critical point,” Jeppesen said. “Without a change in direction, crisis standards of care are imminent for all three of those health districts.”
Any permitted event or activity held in a city-owned building must require masks indoors, require masks outdoors if six feet of physical distance can not be maintained, and submit a plan to the city for approval, and requiring “COVID-19 Protocol Ambassadors” on-site. In addition, the mayor said, all events over 250 people must require proof of vaccination or a recent negative COVID test.
Event organizers will be tasked with supplying masks to those who do not have them.
“We do believe that here in Fargo, we’re probably about two to three weeks away from peaking in terms of COVID cases. But we’re already at capacity and have been for a few weeks now due to our overall non-COVID census being very high,” said Dr. Doug Griffin, vice president and chief medical officer at Sanford Health in Fargo.
Griffin said most of their COVID patients are local or coming from western North Dakota, where vaccination rates remain low. Griffin said the hospital is turning away patients who need critical care, some from as far away as southern Minnesota.
“If I could put on a statewide mandate, if the health department could do it, we’d do it,” he said during a Tuesday press conference. “The legislature has made it very clear that if we put a mandate on for kids in schools to wear a mask, they would take it off.”
DeWine’s comments were a shift from the Republican governor’s previous position, which had been that there isn’t an “appetite” for such mandates. DeWine has instead emphasized personal responsibility and sharing information with Ohioans.
“The good news is that we did peak,” said Peter Graven with Oregon Health and Science University. “The bad news is, the model is showing that it could take until the end of October or even November until we really get down to the levels that we had prior to the surge.”
With recent testing difficulties and delays in contact tracing, parents around Utah are saying they aren’t getting notified of their kids’ classroom exposures until it’s almost too late to do anything about it. Quarantine periods generally are backdated to begin 10 days after the exposure or a student began having symptoms, but families may not know to start quarantine until days later.
Misinformation
We have a two for one tonight for misinformation. Part one – Nicki Minaj.
My cousin in Trinidad won’t get the vaccine cuz his friend got it & became impotent. His testicles became swollen. His friend was weeks away from getting married, now the girl called off the wedding. So just pray on it & make sure you’re comfortable with ur decision, not bullied
There is no scientific evidence, nor one single VAERS entry prior to September 13, 2021, stating that the COVID vaccine causes swelling in a man’s testicles. There is no scientific evidence to back up the claim that the COVID vaccine causes infertility in men or women (there is evidence that COVID infections cause stillbirths and premature births).
However, there is a condition that can cause swelling of the testicles, infertility, and a mate wanting to call off a wedding. That’s called gonorrhea. This type of misinformation is called a false causality fallacy where the “link between premises and conclusion depends on some imagined causal connection that probably does not exist.”
That would be correct.
First, it was hydroxychloroquine, and more than a year after former President Donald Trump stopped advocating it as a possible treatment, people are still taking it.
Then it was Chlorine dioxide, a chemical bleach that has been previously advertised as a junk science cure for autism.
Next came ivermectin – and we’ve beat that dead horse into the ground.
Then it was glyphosate, a herbicide.
Now it’s Betadine, the iodine-based antibacterial antiseptic. Yes, Betadine, and apparently people are drinking it and gargling with it, despite it being toxic when ingested. Additionally, long-term consumption of excess iodine can damage the thyroid.
“Betadine® Antiseptic First Aid products have not been approved to treat coronavirus. Betadine® Antiseptic First Aid products should only be used to help prevent infection in minor cuts, scrapes and burns.”
[SAMMAMISH, Wash.] – (MTN) The first fallout of the Anonymous hack of Sammamish based Epik Software is coming to light, and it includes a misinformation campaign by Republican Larry Elder in the California governor recall.
As the chances of current Governor Gavin Newsom being recalled all but evaporated in the last few weeks, Larry Elder and his surrogates started a campaign to try and delegitimize the election before it even started.
In a report on NBC News, Elder appealed to his supporters yesterday to use an online form on the website stopcafraud.com to report fraud. He went on to claim the site had “detected fraud” in the “results” of the California recall election “resulting in Governor Gavin Newsom being reinstated as governor.”
“This is really becoming the standard GOP playbook,” said Lee Drutman, a senior fellow at the New America think tank who studies democracy. “This is democracy 101. If you don’t have elections that are accepted and decisive, then you don’t really have a democracy, because the alternative is violence or authoritarianism.”
There is one major problem with the claim of fraud – the election hasn’t even started. So where does Epik come into this?
Epik Software is the domain registrar for stopcafraud.com, created on August 27. Allegedly, information gleaned from the hack shows the website is already prepopulated with fake data before the site went live to the public according to a claim made by Heidi Cuda, an investigative reporter.
When the website was first published, it contained no disclaimer that it was backed and funded by the Elder campaign, a campaign law violation. After NBC News reached out for comment, the required disclaimer was added. Additionally, the website has no privacy policy and does not provide disclaimers on how the data collected may or may not be used by third parties.
It is important to note that Epik Software is not directly involved in the physical creation of the website or the manufacturing of fake data. The company provides DNS and hosting services, and is popular among alt-right, white nationalist, militant, QAnon, and misinformation groups.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect the amount of data hacked is 180GB.
[Sammamish, Wash.] – (MTN) Sammamish, Washington based Epik Sofware, the controversial DNS and host provider for websites and apps such as Parler, Gab, and 8Chan was breached by the hacker group Anonymous. The organization announced they were able to access and download ten years of data, with most of it unencrypted. In a message posted by the group, they provided details to access founder Rob Monster’s e-mails, as proof of their claims.
Epik Software provides hosting and DNS to thousands of websites, most involved in the dark corners of the web that spread hate, discuss and plan domestic terrorism, platform QAnon conspiracies, and spread disinformation. A DNS is similar to the physical address of a home or business. Websites use an IP address, which could be thought of as latitude and longitude for a physical location. Most people won’t navigate to an address using that data and instead will look for “100 Main Street.” A DNS provider enables a URL (or multiple URLs) to point to an IP to a common URL.
The potential information on the people or business behind sites such as Parler, Gab, The Storm Front, prolifewhistleblower, 8Chan, BitChute, and Patriot.win, to list a few. Additionally, Anonymous is claiming they have passwords, internal communications, and other data going back ten years. For some sites and apps such as Parler, most information is already known. The bigger reveal could expose thousands of people involved in websites that peddle suicide advice, medical misinformation, and support QAnon.
One-hundred-and-eighty gigabytes of compressed data were released and currently, several sources are working to verify the data and make it usable for researchers and journalists.
The company based out of Sammamish, Washington, and run by Rob Monster, operates under the banner of protecting First Amendment rights. However, the company has a history of not cooperating with criminal investigations when websites have crossed lines into potential criminal behavior.
The company recently made headlines for providing DNS services to the Texas website prolifewhistleblower, after GoDaddy booted the site. The website was created so people could report anyone helping a Texas resident gain access to an abortion, and earn a $10,000 bounty. Less than a week after Epik became the DNS, their legal team also dropped the website. GoDaddy has offices in Kirkland, Washington.
Knowledge is the best tool to fight against fear. A wise person chooses to be informed so they can make sound decisions. To join the fight against COVID misinformation, you can share this update through your social media platform of choice.
[KING COUNTY, Wash.] – (MTN) The number of hospitalized COVID patients dropped slightly over the weekend, while the number of critically ill patients on ventilators increased. New King County and statewide vaccination data show the gap between the most vaccinated and least vaccinated counties grew wider. A new IHME forecast indicates Washington may have hit the peak but forecasts a long fall ahead.
Two more schools in the Lake Washington School District reported COVID cases, while the number of quarantined students at Kamiakin Middle School rose to 140.
The Washington State Hospital Association stated hospitals were operating in “contingency care” as staffing, transportation, and some critical equipment remain in tight supply. 911 dispatchers in Seattle were diverting ambulance calls for part of the day on Saturday, as local emergency departments were flooded with a surge of patients.
A ferry was delayed by a man who refused to wear a mask, and on Friday, ferries heading to the San Juan Islands were canceled due to a sick out.
Complaints have emerged at the Spokane County Fair and the Washington State Fair due to people not wearing masks indoors and lax enforcement.
Almost 90 Washington state employees have filed a lawsuit in Walla Walla trying to block the governor’s vaccination mandate. A woman was cited for trespass in Vancouver for refusing to wear a mask and refusing to leave a private business.
The gap between the highest vaccinated counties versus the least widened more over the weekend. In the South Central Hospital Region, which includes Benton, Franklin, Klickitat, Walla Walla, and Yakima counties, new cases are 886.1 per 100K people. In comparison, the Central Hospital Region, which represents King County, had a rate of 318.6.
Percent of Total Population Fully Vaccinated
Average 14-Day New Case Rate (unadjusted)
50.00% or above (12 counties)
530.8 (up)
40.00% to 49.99% (18 counties)
764.5 (up)
27.30% to 39.99% (19 counties)
848.6 (up)
14-Day New COVID Cases per 100K average by Vaccination Rate, Not Adjusted for Population
Through September 12, Washington’s statewide 14-day rolling average was 526.1 COVID cases per 100K, which is slightly up from Friday but still within the 500 to 535 range the state has bounced between for weeks. Asotin (1,007.1 per 100K), Clallam (1,057.7 per 100K), Douglas (1,024.0 per 100K), Franklin (1,182.0 per 100K), Grant (1,036.7 per 100K) Lincoln (1194.6 per 100K), Okanogan (1,013.2 per 100K), and Stevens (1,191.2 per 100K) reported an extreme number of new cases. Counties in the 800.0 to 999.9 per 100K range include Adams, Benton, Chelan, Columbia, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Pend Oreille, and Yakima. Garfield County dropped to 764.0
The Washington State Department of Health reports a data backlog for test positivity, with the published number 14 days old. According to Johns Hopkins University Medicine, the positivity rate for the last 30 days is 13.40%, and over the previous 7 days, 13.81%. These numbers indicate the state is under testing. Further, there has been little change in the positivity rate for almost a month.
The 7-day case rate by age was up in every age group except 35 to 49-year-olds. Hospitalizations were flat or slightly down over the weekend, and that decrease is mirrored in the patient reports from the Washington State Hospital Association.
Age Group
7-Day Case Rate
7-Day Hospitalization Rate
Ages 0-11
31.8 (up)
0.1
Ages 12-19
25.0 (up)
0.1 (down)
Ages 20-34
57.4 (up)
1.3
Ages 35-49
49.5 (down)
2.6
Ages 50-64
37.0 (up)
3.7
Ages 65-79
18.1 (up)
3.5 (down)
Ages 80+
5.4 (up)
1.7
7-day case rate and 7-day hospitalization rate is per 100K within the age group – the target for 7-day case rate is <25.0, but there are other factors such as vaccination rates within the age groups, how many total tests within the 7-day period, and the positivity rate within each age group
The USA Today COVID Tracker reported 68 deaths on Friday. Numbers from over the weekend typically include multiple days of data and should not be used to read a trend.
Seattle Fire Department diverted 911 calls for ambulances on Saturday
For part of the day on Saturday, calls to Seattle 911 for ambulances were being diverted, with only the most serious calls being responded to. Critical calls were still covered, while others, which would normally get an EMS response, were told they would need to transport themselves.
Hospitals may decide to divert ambulances from going to their emergency room when they get overwhelmed with patients or are expecting a surge from incidents such as a mass casualty event. On Saturday, multiple emergency departments were beyond capacity in Seattle, which created a ripple effect impacting emergency departments both east and north of the city. On Saturday evening, one area hospital had over 80 patients in the emergency department and another 22 waiting for hospital beds.
The number of people coming into emergency departments wasn’t just due to COVID. There was an influx of medical emergencies such as cardiac arrests and several significant auto accidents. Additionally, the Washington State Hospital Association reported this morning there is a shortage of ambulances for ground transit.
Calls to 911 for EMS and fire services were above average on Saturday but nowhere near the record set on June 28, when the department responded to 555 calls for aid.
Latest IHME forecast projects Washington state has hit the peak
On Friday, the IHME updated its forecast models, which projected that Washington state has hit the peak for the current wave. The projected number of fatalities through December 1 declined slightly also, to 8,784. Part of the decline is due to the Washington vaccination mandate for state employees and the statewide order for mask wear. The model projects that if mask wear compliance was 100%, we could save 600 lives.
The model also projects that the state will only see a gradual decline in cases and will settle to half of the current volume of new cases, patients, and fatalities. The Washington State Hospital Association expressed today that slashing the number of hospitalized COVID patients from 22% to 11% as a new normal would be unsustainable for the healthcare system.
Vancouver police cite woman for trespass over refusal to wear mask
The incident apparently happened on September 8 but blew up on social media over the weekend after a story was run in the Post Millenial. A woman with her children at Chuck’s Produce and Street Market on Southeast Mill Plain Blvd. refused to wear or mask or leave the store when directed by staff. She continued to shop and was told police would be called.
When Vancouver police arrived, she continued to refuse the leave the store and went to checkout. While she continued to defy store management and the police, she was cited for trespassing.
Not 2 miles from my home in Vancouver, WA you find: Police writing tickets to citizens for grocery shopping at Chuck's on Millplain without a face mask. Someone tell me what's brought us to this (Hat tip to retired cop who sent it to me) pic.twitter.com/sS14i5Otts
Woman issued a trespass citation for refusing to leave a store in Vancouver, Washington, on September 8
Kitsap ferry delayed by man who refused to wear a mask
On Saturday, the 7:40 PM sailing of the Kitsap ferry from Fauntleroy was delayed for over an hour by a man who refused to wear a mask. According to Washington State Ferry employees, the man was asked to put a mask on during the crossing and refused. He then became “aggressive” toward the crew and appeared to be inebriated. He was issued a 60-day no-trespass order from the Washington State Ferries property. We also hope he didn’t drive off in a vehicle.
Weekend sick-out impacts ferry service to the San Juan Islands
After weeks of threats, a sickout impacted ferry service to the San Juan Islands on Friday evening. Two ferry runs out of Anacortes to Friday Harbor, the 4:45 PM and the 8:20 PM, along with the additional stops at Lopez, Shaw, and Orcas, were canceled due to a lack of Coast Guard certified personnel. Additionally, the #3 Samish was running behind schedule for the afternoon and early evening.
The Washington Federation of State Employees, which includes Washington State Ferries employees, ratified their agreement over mandated COVID vaccination with the state of Washington on Thursday. Over 80% of members voting in favor of the compromise agreement.
Spokane County Fair organizers respond after photos emerge of maskless guests and vendors
Photos emerged over the weekend of non-existent mask wear at the Spokane County Fair. According to KREM, Kevin Humphrey, a regular guest at the fair, talked to officials about the lack of masks and was told that masks were only checked at the entrance but were not being enforced.
In response to the photos, Spokane Interstate Fair Director Erin Gurtel wrote, “The Spokane Fair and Expo Center staff is communicating with all vendors in writing daily, along with verbal announcements over the Fairgrounds sound system multiple times a day. All of the vendors have been made aware of the requirement to wear masks indoors and starting tomorrow, September 13th, we will require this indoors and outdoors.”
The fair has also created numerous signs to post all over the grounds to communicate the new requirement of outdoor masks, Gurtel said. The fair’s team is also doing its best to communicate the requirement and make sure it is “being adhered to,” she added.
People complaining about lack of masks at the Washington State Fair
In Puyallup, where up to one million people are expected to visit the Washington State Fair through September 26, complaints are growing about maskless vendors and guests. Numerous pictures and videos emerged of groups of people both indoors and out.
89 state employees sue over Washington state employee vaccine mandate
A group of state employees from the Washington State Patrol, Washington State Ferries, and Washington State Department of Corrections filed a lawsuit in Walla Walla against the looming vaccine requirement.
According to a report in Northwest News, Nathan Arnold, the lawyer who filed the lawsuit, wrote, “The penalties for not taking affirmative action to comply with the Governor’s Mandate are overly severe, punitive, and unconscionable.” He also called the penalty of termination “arbitrary and capricious,” especially for employees who can work from home or have natural immunity from having previously contracted COVID-19.
The lead plaintiffs are William and Sherra Cleary. Mr. Cleary was listed as a King County firefighter and Ms. Cleary as a healthcare worker who is also pregnant. The plaintiffs are looking for the court to declare the vaccine mandate unconstitutional.
The Tri-Cities Herald reported Troopers Travis Brawdy and Brittany Crosby with the Washington State Patrol and Michele Vasquez, an employee of the Washington state Department of Revenue, were also listed as plaintiffs.
The Biden Administrator’s order for federal employees and contractors to get vaccinated also impacts 11,000 workers at Hanford.
Travel Advisories
We recommend avoiding all travel to Yakima, Klickitat, Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla counties, along with the state of Idaho. Hospital resources in these regions are so constrained that you may receive inadequate care if you experience a medical emergency.
Thank you
Thank you to our new subscribers and those of you who have made one-time contributions. On behalf of the entire team, thank you for helping us keep the lights on!
The report, in which two senior Food and Drug Administration officials were contributors along with the World Health Organization, came as another study indicated the FDA approved Pfizer vaccine and the emergency authorized Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines remain highly effective against hospitalization and death.
“The ability of vaccines that present the antigens of earlier phases of the pandemic (rather than variant-specific antigens) to elicit humoral immune responses against currently circulating variants6,7 indicates that these variants have not yet evolved to the point at which they are likely to escape the memory immune responses induced by those vaccines.”
King County, Washington is reporting over 85% of age eligible residents are vaccinated with at least one dose. The highest rates of positivity are in areas with low vaccination rates statewide. The FDA has provided full approval of the Pfizer vaccine for anyone 16 and over.
COVID vaccines are free for anyone over 12 years old, and no appointment is necessary at most locations. Lyft and Hopelink provide free transportation, and KinderCare, the Learning Care Group, and the YMCA offer free childcare during vaccination appointments or recuperation.
According to the DoH COVID Dashboard, 23.2% of all acute care patients hospitalized in Washington have COVID. A hospital system caring for this many COVID-positive patients in acute care is considered to be under “severe stress.” ICUs are at 90.9% of capacity statewide, with 35.0% of ICU patients fighting COVID. All of these numbers are up from over the weekend.
The new hospital admission rate for COVID patients was 162 per day on September 11. This is a decrease from last week and is an indicator that the state may be at its peak. The Department of Health reported there were 1,742 COVID patients statewide on September 12 and 275 on ventilators. That is down from the 283 reported on Saturday. Weekend numbers typically get adjusted upward on Tuesday as additional data is processed.
EvergreenHealth reported there are 39 COVID patients in Kirkland and none in Monroe.
The Washington State Hospital Association held its weekly press conference, telling reporters that hospitals are operating under “contingency care” statewide. From walk-in clinics to trauma centers, medical facilities continue to struggle with the crush of regular and COVID patients.
We are in a crisis, but we are not in crisis standards of care,” said Washington State Hospital Association (WSHA) Executive Vice President Taya Briley.
Briley also reported that 95% of hospitalized COVID patients statewide are unvaccinated, saying, “We are far, far above our peak from last year.”
Dr. Christopher Baliga with Virginia Mason Franciscan Health in Seattle added, “The hospitals are struggling.”
“Everyone who works in healthcare, it does feel like everybody has gone back to normal. It is scary, frustrating, and disheartening for people not to understand what is going on. We have stretched almost as far as we can go.”
“With the last surge in the fall, our hospitals were empty. That’s not true anymore. All of those patients are there…and they are sicker. This is non-COVID. YOu now have a hospital that is essentially full having to manage an influx of COVID patients.”
When asked about what additional resources would be available to improve the situation, Briley reported there were few options left. The state was already enlisting the help of unpaid volunteers. The WSHA had already reached out for National Guard resources, but the critical staff and equipment have already been deployed to other states to support their COVID surges, along with aiding in hurricane, flooding, and climate disasters. Federal resources are also stretched thin.
The press conference closed with an appeal to get vaccinated, wear a mask, and avoid risky behavior that could cause a general injury.
– Benjamin Franklin Elementary (?) – Juanita Elementary (1) – Juanita High School (37) – Peter Kirk Elementary (2) – Robert Frost Elementary (9) – Thoreau Elementary (4)
– Kamiakin Middle School (140) – Mark Twain Elementary
Northshore
YELLOW
– Arrowhead Elementary (1) – Bothell High School (19) – Canyon Creek Elementary (9) – Canyon Park Middle School (4) – Cottage Lake Elementary (4) – Crystal Springs Elementary (4) – East Ridge Elementary (2) – Fernwood Elementary (2) – Frank Love Elementary (11) – Hollywood Hills Elementary (1) – Inglemoor High School (2) – Kenmore Elementary (1) – Kenmore Middle School (7) – Maywood Hills Elementary (2) – North Creek High School (6) – Ruby Bridges Elementary (1) – Secondary Academy for Success (1) – Shelton View Elementary (7) – Skyview Middle School (10) – Sunrise Elementary (4) – Timbercrest Middle School (9) – Westhill Elementary (5) – Woodin Elementary (1) – Woodinville High School (7) – Woodmore Elementary (9)
None
Local Districts Scorecard
In the Lake Washington School District, new quarantines were announced at Ben Franklin and Robert Frost, while the number of quarantined students at Kamiakin Middle School grew to 140, 24% of the student body. Several classrooms are now fully virtual, moving the school over into the closure column.
It is important to note that quarantined does not indicate widespread infection. To date, none of the area schools we are following have reported a significant outbreak of COVID cases that has been transmitted in school or at school activities.
Kirkland-Bellevue-Woodinville
King County Public Health updated the vaccination rates by zip code, with the numbers improving throughout the region. The northern half of Kirkland continues to lag behind the rest of the local area.
King County COVID vaccination rates – at least one dose – by zip code as of September 13, 2021
Zip Code
Percent vaccinated, at least one dose, 12 and older
98155
92.7%
98028
89.2%
98011
88.7%
98034
86.0%
98033
92.6%
98072
91.6%
98052
>95.0%
98004
>95.0%
98039
94.3%
98005
>95.0%
98007
89.9%
Vaccination rates for those 12 and older by zip code – at least one dose
National Round-Up
Johns Hopkins University Cumulitaive Case Tracker does not reflect nationwide data on Monday due to the way states report their information.
Irresponsible headline of the day – 57% of hospitalized COVID patients are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms
The Atlantic is grabbing headlines with a story out this afternoon, Our Most Reliable Pandemic Number is Losing Meaning. There is a lot that is problematic with this story and the interpretation of a study released today. The study, The COVID-19 Hospitalization Metric in the Pre- and Post-vaccination Eras as a Measure of Pandemic Severity: A Retrospective, Nationwide Cohort Study, is a pre-print non-reviewed study. The study includes a list of prestigious and respected doctors from the Veteran’s Administration and Tufts University.
For those who only read headlines (and the coming misinformation memes), there are many things to consider that the story in The Atlantic did not.
COVID patients, even when asymptomatic or mildly sick, require additional safety protocols for hospital staff. This takes up time, equipment, and personal protection equipment. This would be the same protocols for patients with other infectious diseases such as a measles outbreak. The critical difference is the scale of the number of COVID positive patients coming into hospitals.
The report only analyzed patients in the Veteran’s Administration, which is heavily male, and does not include pediatric patients. The VA demographics are not representative of the United States population.
The report study period ended in June, before the surge in Delta cases.
The study did not control for patients who required oxygen therapy before being admitted to a VA hospital, a condtion that is more common among veterans than the general population.
The VA has a policy of testing all patients for COVID regardless of what they come into the hospital for. That is not reflective of all hospitals in the United States.
Not all severe cases of COVID are admitted to a VA hospital, and those cases aren’t included in the data.
The report concludes, “Consideration should be given to updating the definition of COVID-19 hospitalizations to improve differentiation between hospitalization caused by COVID-19 and those associated with detection of SARS-CoV-2 through the addition of straightforward and objective measures of disease severity.”
After reaching a peak of 2,890 COVID-19 inpatients on Sept. 1, the state’s hospitals are starting to see a steady fall in the number of coronavirus patients.
As of Monday, hospitals were down to 2,474 patients being treated for the virus, according to the latest data from the Alabama Department of Public Health. It’s not clear to what extent the drop in hospitalizations is due to deaths or discharges.
By Monday, the state health department reported 210 COVID-19 patients in Alaska hospitals — the most ever. Thirty-three of them were on ventilators.
Health care officials have also cautioned that the true number of hospitalizations is likely even higher because the state’s data doesn’t include some long-term coronavirus patients, reported the Anchorage Daily News.
Hospitals in Anchorage had no remaining ICU beds on Monday.
Police have confirmed they are investigating a report of a hate crime and battery that occurred in the city last week, but they declined to disclose further details.
The Wells Fargo employee asked the man to wear a mask, and he responded aggressively. When he offered a mask to the customer, he started rummaging through the file cabinets and drawers of the bank, forcing employees to threaten to call the police.
The man then threatened the employee, calling him a racial slur and finishing with, “I better not catch you outside.”
When the bank closed at 5:30, the man was waiting for the banker and assaulted him in the parking lot. The employee fought back, and as a coworker called the police, the attacker fled. He was chased for a block, and as police arrived, scrambled over a fence.
“It’s crazy,” he added. “The guy went home, he plotted, he laid in wait, he ambushed me. And he called me a ‘sp–.’ I’m thinking, ‘Gosh, you know, he completely escalated on his own. He didn’t like the idea of having to wear a mask.’”
Speaking in Alachua County, DeSantis said government agencies in violation could potentially face millions of dollars in penalties.
“We are gonna stand for the men and women who are serving us. We are gonna protect Florida jobs,” DeSantis said. “We are not gonna let people be fired because of a vaccine mandate.”
Cases started climbing in late June and finally topped out toward the end of August. At that point, the state averaged more than 9,200 new cases a day. The average dropped by almost a thousand a week later.
Georgia never surpassed January’s surge that topped out at an average of nearly 11,000 new cases a day, but the state did almost double the peak from July 2020 of less than 4,700.
Health experts questioned whether traveling and get-togethers over the Labor Day weekend would keep cases climbing. The holiday still falls well within the two-week preliminary data window, so the state is still counting tests from that time.
Idaho’s 2,713 new cases, which included the weekend, brought the state’s seven-day moving average for new daily cases to 1,400. Hospitalizations hit a record high on Friday, with 626 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 statewide.
The Panhandle and North Central Health Districts in Idaho continue to operate using “crisis standards of care.” We strongly recommend not to travel to Idaho during this time of medical crisis. Any health emergency requiring hospitalization could result in you receiving inadequate care.
Illinois
We reported last week about Veronica Wolski. A well-known figure in the Chicago area for her sign waves over an expressway, last week it was widely reported that she was in the hospital with COVID.
Veronica Wolski in a Chicago area Staples refusing to wear a face mask, and on BIPAP therapy at a Chicago area hospital
Wolski died on Sunday night to the outrage of the QAnon community, disgraced lawyer Lin Wood, and former national security advisory Michael Flynn. According to her supporters, she had requested to be treated with ivermectin, and the hospital has refused.
A harassment campaign led by Wood and Flynn flooded the hospital with phone calls and e-mails.
Disgraced lawyer Lin Wood’s statement on the death of Veronica Wolski
Wolski was a passionate supporter of Bernie Sanders starting in 2014, campaigning vigorously for the Vermont Senator. When Sanders failed to get the nomination from the Democratic Party, she became despondent and starting following the QAnon conspiracy.
North Carolina
The Union County Public School Board voted Monday morning to end COVID-19 contact tracing and quarantining for non-positive students and staff.
That means students can go to school even if they have come in close contact with someone who is COVID-positive. The only people who have to stay home are those who have tested positive or have symptoms.
The School Board released a statement after the decision was made.
“At the Sept. 13 Special Called meeting, the Union County Board of Education voted effective immediately, to halt all staff responsibilities regarding contact tracing and quarantining for students and staff, except as required by law. The statutory authority of managing contact tracing and quarantining is that of Union County Public Health.
“As required by law, school nurses, administrators and school staff will continue to address positive, presumptive or confirmed cases of COVID-19. All students and staff who do not have a positive COVID-19 test or symptoms, should return to school or work immediately.
“If students or employees have the following symptoms: fever or chills, sore throat, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting, headache, they should stay home, stay away from others and call their health care provider.
“Students and employees who have been isolated due to a positive case or COVID-19 symptoms, should not report to school or work until they have completed 10 days of isolation, symptoms have improved and fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication.
“Face coverings are still optional for students and staff in Union County Public Schools.”
“The hospital is full,” said Rex Director of Emergency Services Kim Boyder. “We are like 90% or greater capacity in the hospital. So that means we also get backed up in the ER. So that means we need additional space for not only the volume but some of the boarding.”
Although COVID-19 related hospitalizations have declined since Friday, 93% of Oregon’s hospital beds for adults are full, and there are just 62 adult intensive care unit beds available in the state.
Between Friday and Sunday, health officials say there were 32 deaths due to COVID-19. To date, the state’s death toll since the start of the pandemic is 3,446.
Oregon is in the midst of its worst COVID-19 surge since the start of the pandemic — which health officials say is fueled by unvaccinated people and the highly transmissible delta variant.
Knowledge is the best tool to fight against fear. A wise person chooses to be informed so they can make sound decisions. To join the fight against COVID misinformation, you can share this update through your social media platform of choice.
[KING COUNTY, Wash.] – (MTN) Hospitals in Eastern Washington continue to struggle with more officials warning they are running out of staff and resources. Counties with higher vaccination rates have fewer new COVID cases, while counties with low vaccination rates run out of options.
There were more COVID cases in all three school districts we are monitoring, including Peter Kirk Elementary and an expansion of quarantined students at Juanita High School and Kamiakin Middle School.
The Washington Federation of State Employees overwhelmingly approved a compromise agreement with Washington in support of the Governor’s vaccine mandate.
The Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer ignored a court order barring protests within one mile of Vancouver, Washington schools. The same organizers of the ongoing Vancouver protests have an event scheduled in Woodinville on September 25.
New data from the CDC shows that Moderna is the vaccine winner against the Delta variant and provides a hint on why the Johnson and Johnson vaccine has all but disappeared.
Reactions to announcements made by the Biden Administration yesterday are following partisan lines to the surprise of no one.
Finally, you probably heard about a study that indicated that 85% of men who take ivermectin become infertile. A study that we haven’t mentioned until right now. We cover that one in our misinformation section.
Although COVID cases remain on a plateau statewide, counties with lower vaccination rates have more new cases per capita.
Percent of Total Population Fully Vaccinated
Average 14-Day New Case Rate (unadjusted)
50.00% or above (12 counties)
517.8
40.00% to 49.99% (17 counties)
697.2
27.30% to 39.99% (10 counties)
828.5
14-Day New COVID Cases per 100K average by Vaccination Rate, Not Adjusted for Population
In the South Central Hospital Region, which includes Benton, Franklin, Klickitat, Walla Walla, and Yakima counties, new cases are 844.9 per 100K people.
Through September 9, Washington’s statewide 14-day rolling average was 508.0 COVID cases per 100K. Clallam (1,008.2 per 100K), Columbia (1,075.3 per 100K), Franklin (1297.0.0 per 100K), Lincoln (1049.5 per 100K, Okanogan (1,001.6 per 100K), and Stevens (1,060.5 per 100K) reported an extreme number of new cases. Counties in the 800.0 to 999.9 per 100K range include Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Cowlitz, Douglas, Grant, Lewis, Pend Oreille, and Yakima. Garfield County dropped to 764.0
King County is at 301.1 cases per 100K, statistically unchanged from yesterday.
The Washington State Department of Health reports a data backlog for test positivity, with the published number 14 days old. According to Johns Hopkins University Medicine, the positivity rate for the last 30 days is 13.73%, and over the previous 7 days, 13.84%. These numbers indicate the state is under testing, and testing locations are becoming overwhelmed in the hardest-hit counties. The rate of hospitalization was flat to down across all age groups.
Age Group
7-Day Case Rate
7-Day Hospitalization Rate
Ages 0-11
28.3 (up)
0.1
Ages 12-19
22.0
0.2
Ages 20-34
50.4 (down)
1.2 (down)
Ages 35-49
45.2
2.8
Ages 50-64
33.2
3.8 (down)
Ages 65-79
16.6
3.8 (down)
Ages 80+
5.1 (down)
1.6
7-day case rate and 7-day hospitalization rate is per 100K within the age group – the target for 7-day case rate is <25.0, but there are other factors such as vaccination rates within the age groups, how many total tests within the 7-day period, and the positivity rate within each age group
The agreement provides an additional leave day, a retirement option, vaccine access and education on work time, and a fair, equitable, and consistent process for employees seeking a medical or religious exemption.
“Our union was able to achieve what we set out for—a victory for public health and due process,” said WFSE President and Psychiatric Social Worker Mike Yestramski.
State employees have until this Sunday to get their first dose and comply with the October 18 deadline to be totally vaccinated. Although the Johnson & Johnson vaccine could be received as late as October 4 to meet the deadline, the supply of the single-dose vaccine is low.
Patriot Prayer, Proud Boys, and activists ignore protest injuction in Vancouver
Multiple groups protested at Skyview High School in Vancouver in defiance of a court order restricting protests within one mile of any school in the city. Skyview High School parents received an e-mail informing them of the multiple protests planned. The school district added security and was “coordinating with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.”
E-mail message sent to Skyview High School parents warning of new protests by anti-vaccination and anti-government groups
Members of Patriot Front, the Proud Boys – including Tusitala “Tiny” Toese, and the Washougal Moms protested on school grounds and across the street. Police did not intervene to enforce the court order. The group then left to protest at the home of Clark County district judge Suzan Clark’s home. Social media posts and a website listed the judge’s address publicly, and on Telegram, there were calls to come armed to her home. Protesters arrived at the published address this afternoon to find that it wasn’t the residence of Judge Clark.
The Group Wake Up Washington calling for a protest at a District Judge’s home to protest a court order
The group that organized the planned protest at the judge’s home also organizes anti-vaccination protests across Washington state, including upcoming area protests in Seattle, Marysville, and Woodinville. The Seattle Truth Network, in coordination with Wake Up Washington, is planning an anti-vaccination event on September 25 at Rooster’s Bakery and Cafe in Woodinville.
Palmer Davis of La Center is behind the announcement to protest at the judge’s house yesterday. Davis ran for a city council seat in La Center last month, receiving 4.68% of the vote in a 4 candidate field.
The anti-vaccination and the anti-government movements are intersectional, with Open Schools USA, Wake Up Washington, and Washougal Mom’s have embraced support from right-wing organizations. In a study released on August 27, the Proud Boys were among the top three factions in the country that brandished firearms at protests, and Patriot Prayer was among the top ten. The same study found that 25% of the events that the Proud Boys showed up at descended into violence.
Travel Advisories
We recommend avoiding all travel to Yakima, Klickitat, Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla counties, along with the state of Idaho. Hospital resources in these regions are so constrained that you may receive inadequate care if you experience a medical emergency.
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The research data was collected from 187 hospitals and 221 emergency departments and urgent care clinics. The nine states utilized were selected because the Delta variant accounted for at least 50% of the laboratory-confirmed COVID cases at the start of the study period. Researchers examined confirmed COVID cases among 32,867 adults 18 and over, and vaccination status was confirmed using electronic records and immunization registries. For the study, a person was considered fully vaccinated 14 days after they received their final dose.
The median age of an infected person was 43 years old, and the median age for an individual hospitalized was 65. The study did not take into account factors such as weight, race, community COVID restrictions or mandates, or comorbidities.
The study found that the Moderna vaccine was the most effective against the Delta variant, followed by Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. For the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, some of the data is concerning.
Vaccine
Effectiveness Against Delta Variant
Effectiveness Against Hospitalization
Johnson & Johnson
65%
60%
Moderna
92%
95%
Pfizer
77%
80%
All Vaccinated Individuals
82%
86%
CDC Study on vaccination effectiveness against the Delta variant – September 10, 2021
The study does have several limitations. Overall vaccine effectiveness and how much immunity declines over time have not been fully evaluated, and the time between being completely vaccinated before testing positive was not considered. The study did not account for partial vaccinations, with data included in the unvaccinated group. Lastly, although the study uses a significant population sample, the findings are likely too narrow to apply to the entire United States.
The federal government stopped the distribution of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in June of this year, and doses are very hard to find. This report provides some insight into why the one-dose vaccine has fallen out of favor.
King County, Washington is reporting over 84% of age eligible residents are vaccinated with at least one dose. The highest rates of positivity are in areas with low vaccination rates statewide. The FDA has provided full approval of the Pfizer vaccine for anyone 16 and over.
COVID vaccines are free for anyone over 12 years old, and no appointment is necessary at most locations. Lyft and Hopelink provide free transportation, and KinderCare, the Learning Care Group, and the YMCA offer free childcare during vaccination appointments or recuperation.
According to the DoH COVID Dashboard, 22.4% of all acute care patients hospitalized in Washington have COVID. A hospital system caring for this many COVID-positive patients in acute care is considered to be under “severe stress.” ICUs are at 89.6% of capacity statewide, with 34.1% of ICU patients fighting COVID, a small increase compared to yesterday.
The new hospital admission rate for COVID patients is 176 per day on September 7. The Department of Health reported there were 1,755 COVID patients statewide and 261 on ventilators.
Yesterday, we reported that at least one hospital in Yakima was having to ration care and warned they were close to crisis standards of care. In Colville, Mount Carmel Hospital is full, and more than half of the patients have COVID.
“Stevens County today has 14. When you think about only having 25 beds or less in critical access,” Peg Currie, the chief operating officer at Providence Healthcare, explained. “Imagine what the emergency rooms are like, the waiting lists are like, to try to get into a higher level of acute care.”
Officials in Spokane County held a press conference today, reporting a record number of COVID and total patients in the hospital.
As of Friday morning, 150 patients with COVID-19 are hospitalized at Sacred Heart and Holy Family Hospital in Spokane, and 95% are unvaccinated, Providence COO Peg Currie said during the press conference.
“It’s not a record that we wanted to break, but we have broken that,” Currie said. “Many of these [patients] are in our ICUs, and everybody that is in the Sacred Heart and Holy Family ICU now on a ventilator is not vaccinated.”
The age group that Providence is seeing the most in its hospitals is 40 to 50 years old, Currie said, which is much younger than previously hospitalized patients.
– Kamiakin Middle School (94) – Juanita Elementary (1) – Juanita High School (37) – Peter Kirk Elementary (2) – Thoreau Elementary (4)
– Mark Twain Elementary – 2nd-grade class (multiple confirmed cases)
Northshore
YELLOW
– Arrowhead Elementary (1) – Bothell High School (18) – Canyon Creek Elementary (10) – Canyon Park Middle School (4) – Crystal Springs Elementary (5) – East Ridge Elementary (2) – Fernwood Elementary (2) – Frank Love Elementary (9) – Hollywood Hills Elementary (1) – Inglemoor High School (1) – Kenmore Elementary (1) – Kenmore Middle School (10) – Maywood Hills Elementary (2) – North Creek High School (11) – Ruby Bridges Elementary (2) – Shelton View Elementary (6) – Skyview Middle School (11) – Sunrise Elementary (1) – Timbercrest Middle School (6) – Westhill Elementary (5) – Woodin Elementary (1) – Woodinville High School (6) – Woodmore Elementary (9)
None
Local Districts Scorecard
The number of students moving to quarantine expanded at Juanita High School and Kamiakin Middle School in the Lake Washington School District. Parents were notified that 29 at Juanita High and 13 at Kamiakin had close contact with a positive COVID case. Additionally, parents at Peter Kirk Elementary were notified that 2 students had been put into quarantine due to a COVID exposure.
Multiple school districts throughout Western Washington are reporting COVID cases, including Shoreline and Edmonds.
Yesterday’s announcement by the Biden Administration’s mandating the COVID vaccine for most federal employees and contractors, and requesting OSHA to implement a program that mandates vaccination or weekly COVID screening at companies with 100 or more employees, is being met with fierce resistance along partisan lines.
The governors of Arizona, Indiana, Georgia, Montana, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas vowed to fight the looming OSHA rules in court. During a visit with first lady Jill Biden to a middle school in Washington D.C., the president was asked his message to Republicans who decry the vaccine mandates as federal overreach and plan to challenge them in court.
“Have at it,” Biden said. “We’re playing for real here. This isn’t a game.”
Nome’s hospital doesn’t even have any COVID-19 patients, but it still faces “a COVID problem,” as Dr. Tim Lemaire, a family practitioner and member of the Norton Sound Health Corp. incident command team, put it. “We don’t have COVID here, but we can’t get our regular patients … care because of COVID everywhere else.”
Trying to move patients with heart attacks, strokes, or injuries from four-wheeler accidents, Norton Sound Regional Hospital sometimes has to call three or four facilities to find an open bed, at least once moving a patient all the way to Seattle to get them into an ICU.
State officials say rural hospitals throughout the state are suddenly facing unheard-of medical situations because they’re holding patients they’ve never had to before.
Brian Ritchie, the state’s health emergency response operations manager, helped a rural hospital find oxygen supplies after COVID-positive patients on high-flow therapy ran through existing cylinders faster than expected.
The district hasn’t experienced a single outbreak during the first month of instruction. Officials define an outbreak as “three or more cases in non-related households in which the source of infection occurred at the school, and not another setting.”
The San Francisco health department also emphasized that vaccinations “are our best defense to protect children,” noting most pediatric cases of COVID-19 in the city came from unvaccinated adults in a household getting the virus and spreading it to unvaccinated children.
“The difference between this wave and all past waves is that Coloradans have returned to their normal lives,” Bookman said. “Those who have been vaccinated have been given the opportunity to go out and live their lives. What comes with that is additional cases of trauma, additional heart attacks, additional strokes – we have seen people who have delayed receiving care over the course of the pandemic because they were afraid to go to their doctor. And this is all coming together with the increase in COVID hospitalizations at this point to really stress our health care system.”
Colorado’s hospitals report that 81% of those hospitalized in the state are unvaccinated, and 85% of recent COVID deaths were unvaccinated, said Herlihy.
DeSantis’ press secretary Christina Pushaw tweeted: “(First) District Court of Appeals just granted the State of Florida’s request to reinstate the stay — meaning, the rule requiring ALL Florida school districts to protect parents’ rights to make choices about masking kids is BACK in effect!”
Yesterday, a Brevard County School Board meeting was far more subdued than the August 30 meeting that made national headlines. While things were quieter outside, a crowd of over 20 people gathered to burn masks. A counter-protestor with a megaphone, a Firehouse Subs helmet, and a fire extinguisher lectured them about fire safety and threatened to put out any fire they lit.
Megan Alexandra Blankebhiller of Jacksonville, Florida, arrived in a hospital emergency room on August 13. As she waited to be seen, she shot a short Tik Tok video, where the screams of another person could be heard in the background. The screams were coming from a person who had lost a loved one in another area of the emergency department.
Blankenbiller, who was 31 and unvaccinated, was admitted to the hospital with COVID. She made a series of videos appealing for her followers to get vaccinated from her bed as her condition declined.
“I shouldn’t have waited,” she said in the video, which has been viewed nearly 900,000 times. “If you are even 70% sure that you want the vaccine, go get it. Don’t wait. Go get it because hopefully, if you get it, you won’t end up in the hospital like me.”
By August 20, Blankenbiller was in critical condition and on a ventilator, and she died shortly thereafter. Blankenbiller’s sister, Cristina Blankenbiller, told WebMD in an interview that their family had agreed to get vaccinated, including Alexandra, shortly before she became ill.
Idaho
The Panhandle and North Central Health Districts in Idaho continue to operate using “crisis standards of care.” We strongly recommend not to travel to Idaho during this time of medical crisis. Any health emergency requiring hospitalization could result in you receiving inadequate care.
Illinois
Veronica Wolski was well known in the Chicago area for producing videos and harassing retail employees and people wearing masks. In one video, she walked through a Staples, wearing a “Lone Ranger” style mask, telling the manager who asked her to wear a mask that she has one on and has a medical condition that exempts her.
Veronica Wolski in a Chicago area Staples refusing to wear a face mask, and on BIPAP therapy at a Chicago area hospital
Wolski is hospitalized with COVID at Ressurection Medical Center in Norwood Park, Illinois. According to her supporters, she has requested to be treated with ivermectin, and the hospital has refused. Wolski was known in QAnon circles. Her situation has drawn the attention of disgraced attorney Lin Wood and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn (have we mentioned lately how the anti-vaccination and the anti-government movements are intersectional).
“At AMITA Health, our first priority is the health and safety of our patients. Our physicians and clinicians follow the full guidance of the FDA and the CDC in the treatment of COVID-19. And while AMITA Health Resurrection Medical Center has received hundreds of phone calls and emails associated with one patient’s care, we have simply and respectfully noted the concerns shared.”
The largest peer-reviewed study on the effectiveness of ivermectin in treating COVID so far indicated that the anti-parasitic provided no benefit compared to a placebo. For hospitalized patients, it made them sicker.
Hospitalizations peaked at 1,178 COVID-19 cases on Sept. 1, and critical care resources remain under extreme strain, with roughly half of all intensive care units in the state filled with COVID-19 patients who are largely unvaccinated.
“It looks like we are seeing the flattening of cases that we had hoped for,” said Peter Graven, Ph.D., lead data scientist in OHSU’s Business Intelligence unit. “However, we are still projecting it will be a very long time before hospitalization levels return to more manageable levels.
Tennessee
Tennessee High schooler Grady Knox’s passionate plea for the health of himself and others was mocked earlier this week at a Rutherford County Board of Education meeting, a scene that has drawn national attention.
Knox was ridiculed, even laughed at, Tuesday evening by some in the school board meeting audience when he said his grandmother died of COVID-19 after being exposed to a person without a mask.
Knox’s grandmother lived at Adams Place retirement community in Murfreesboro before she died of COVID-19.
One of the persons who heckled Knox was quickly identified as Erika Casher, a nurse who had spoken at other school board meetings. It was reported today that Casher was terminated from her position with Cigna.
Texas
Karra Harwood of Baycliff, Texas, is mourning the death of her 4-year old daughter, Kali Cook, who died of COVID. Harwood, who is unvaccinated, had become sick and was confirmed to have on Monday. After her diagnosis, she isolated herself from her family.
Later that evening, Kali’s grandmother noticed she was sick, and at 2 a.m. found that she had a fever. At 7 a.m., she was found dead in her bed. An autopsy confirmed that Kali also had COVID.
“She was so funny and sassy,” said Karra Harwood, Kali’s mother. “She wasn’t your average little girl. She’d rather play with worms and frogs than wear bows. She was just so pretty and full of life.”
Harwood said she didn’t want people to think of her daughter as an anonymous statistic through sobs Thursday. She wanted people to know who her daughter was.
“I would rather her be a name than just a little girl,” she said. “She was beautiful.”
“I was one of the people that was anti. I was against it,” she said. “Now, I wish I never was.”
Misinformation
A lot of schadenfreude has been spilled in the news on social media after a 2011 study on the Effects of Ivermectin therapy on the sperm functions of Nigerian onchocerciasis patients reemerged. The study found that 85% of men who took ivermectin to treat onchocerciasis (river blindness) suffered from low sperm count and poor sperm quality, rendering them infertile.
The story was widely published, and tonight, many media outlets are retracting the story. We never highlighted this piece of news, and we’re labeling the claim as misinformation.
The problems with the study are numerous. First, it only involved 37 men, which is a very small sample size. Researchers wanted to include more people in the study, but many were disqualified because they already had low sperm count and/or low sperm quality.
The men took ivermectin for 11 months to treat active river blindness, which is longer than almost anyone taking human or animal formulations of ivermectin as a preventative or treatment for COVID (no, it doesn’t do either).
The study found that 85% of the men they observed over the 11 months had poor sperm quality and/or count, rendering them infertile. The study didn’t account for other potential factors, which may have been very likely given so many test subjects were rejected before the study was done because they were already functionally infertile.
Misinformation cuts both ways, and you should always consider your own personal biases when consuming information and deciding what is fact and fiction.
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