4 Whatcom regions post single-digit COVID infection rates ... the other 3 were even lower
For the first time since the Whatcom County Health Department began reporting COVID-19 data by school district region 21 months ago, all seven regions within the county posted weekly infection rates below 10 at the same time.
Three of the regions — the areas covered by the Lynden, Meridian and Mount Baker school districts — actually had rates below single digits with weekly infection rates of zero new COVID cases per 100,000 residents, according to the heath department’s latest location data released Thursday, March 24.
Before the latest report, Whatcom County regions had only posted 30 weekly infection rates lower than 10 cases per 100,000 residents, with all but four of them coming during early stages of the pandemic in 2020.
The region covered by the Bellingham Public Schools district had never posted a single-digit infection rate, though that region did post at rate of 10 for the week ending July 3, 2021.
Whatcom’s CDC community level
Not surprisingly, Whatcom County received its fourth consecutive “low” COVID-19 community level ranking from the CDC, and for the first time, all seven regions would have made the “low” community level independently if the CDC broke rankings down to the school district level, The Bellingham Herald’s analysis showed.
To be classified in the “low” level by the CDC, counties must have:
▪ Fewer than 200 new cases per 100,000 residents in the past seven days.
▪ Fewer than 10 new COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents in the past seven days.
▪ Less than 10% of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients.
The CDC analyzed data March 17-23 for its latest community levels.
The Washington State Department of Health COVID-19 Data Dashboard showed Whatcom had a weekly infection rate of 57 new cases per 100,000 residents and a weekly infection rate of 4.4 new patients per 100,000 residents for the most recently completed epidemiological data March 8-14.
St. Joseph’s hospital in Bellingham reported it was treating six COVID-related patients on Friday, March 25, which was unchanged from its last report and gave it an average daily snapshot of 5.7 patients over the past week. That represents 2.3% of the hospital’s 252 inpatient beds, meaning the county, as a whole, is well below all three thresholds used by the CDC to determine COVID community levels.
All 39 counties in Washington state were classified in the “low” community level by the CDC in its latest update.
Whatcom’s weekly regional data
The weekly COVID-19 infection rate was not the only number heading down, according to the health department’s latest data, as all seven regions also enjoyed shrinking weekly COVID-related hospitalization rates last week.
Six of the seven regions had hospitalization rates of zero new patients per 100,000 residents, with Bellingham the only outlier at one new COVID-related patient per 100,000 residents.
The county health department releases weekly data on the location of COVID-19 cases using school districts as geographical boundaries, including each region’s number of total cases during the pandemic, infection rate, hospitalization rate, percentage of residents who have initiated vaccination and a breakdown of case rates by age. Data in this week’s report was through Saturday, March 19.
Overall, Whatcom County saw its pandemic total of cases increase by 30 between March 13 and March 19, which was less than the 56 cases reported one week earlier.
Here is what the health department’s latest data showed for the seven regions in the county:
▪ Bellingham: Had a weekly infection rate of eight cases per 100,000 residents (down from 51 a week earlier) with 14 new cases reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate dropped to one COVID-related hospitalization per 100,000 residents, and 83% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
▪ Blaine: Had a weekly infection rate of five cases per 100,000 residents (down from 59 a week earlier) with six new cases reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate dropped to zero COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, and 76% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
▪ Ferndale: Had a weekly infection rate of six cases per 100,000 residents (down from 59 a week earlier) with two new cases reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate stayed at zero COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, and 72% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
▪ Lynden: Had a weekly infection rate of zero cases per 100,000 residents (down from 47 a week earlier) with one new case reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate stayed at zero COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, and 59% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
▪ Meridian: Had a weekly infection rate of zero cases per 100,000 residents (down from 27 a week earlier) with no new cases reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate dropped to zero COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, and 68% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
▪ Mount Baker: Had a weekly infection rate of zero cases per 100,000 residents (down from six a week earlier) with two new cases reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate stayed at zero COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, and 50% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
▪ Nooksack Valley: Had a weekly infection rate of nine cases per 100,000 residents (down from 44 a week earlier) with five new cases reported since last week’s report. The region’s hospitalization rate dropped to zero COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, and 56% of the region’s residents have initiated vaccination.
