Widespread vaccination expected soon

According to Health Officer Gary Pace, almost 30% of Lake County residents have received their first dose of the COVID vaccine, and over 50% of the highest risk group (75 and older). Vaccine supply is expected to expand soon, meaning more and more people will be eligible.

Pace noted people who are vaccinated do not seem to be getting infected at this point. “The more of us that get vaccinated, the more quickly we will be able to return to normal.”

He added that one third of COVID-related deaths occurred in nursing homes in the Fall — activities were shut down, and people were stuck in their rooms but no infections have occurred in any of the three nursing homes since residents were vaccinated, and activities are resuming.

“People that decide not to get vaccinated will be more likely to get sick in the coming months,” warned Pace. “Also, some activities will likely start requiring vaccination in order to participate; we don’t know what that will look like yet.”

The Health Department urges people to go ahead and get their shots as soon as they are eligible. Side effects are generally mild and short-lived. Additionally, officials noted no serious reactions have occurred in Lake County. Each of the approved vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna and Janssen/Johnson & Johnson) has proven to be very safe.

New vaccination clinic schedule starts this week:

• Mondays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Lakeport Auto Movies (52 Soda Bay Road, Lakeport)

• Tuesdays to Thursdays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Redbud Park (14655 Lakeshore Drive, Clearlake)

Visit https://myturn. ca.gov to schedule your vaccination appointment. Residents can also now call 833422-4255, to determine if it is their turn to be vaccinated.

Lake County now in the Red Tier, new infections continue to trend downward

After a period of 108 days in the most restrictive Purple Tier of the State’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, Lake County entered the Red Tier last week.

“We must stay under 45 total cases per week to remain in the Red Tier. Under the State’s current framework, we cannot become eligible to advance to the Orange Tier until at least Tuesday, April 6,” noted Pace adding that as more Californians are vaccinated, and particularly those in the most vulnerable communities, the lesser restrictive tiers are expected to expand.

“With more activities opening up, more contact across households is expected; we must continue to make strides with vaccination and take appropriate precautions to continue recent positive trends,” stated Pace.

According to the COVID-19 dashboard posted on the Health Department website, at press time Monday

there remained 40 active cases in the county, and only one hospitalized patient who was COVID-positive. Out of over 3,200 overall cases, 3,157 recovered with 43 deaths.

Also as of last week according to the data provided by the department, there were 24 cases in the County, down from a peak of 297 in late December at the peak of the latest surge of the pandemic. District 2 which encompasses most of the City of Clearlake and areas east had the most cases totaling 882 cases.

Latinos and White non Hispanics had the highest percentage of cases among the various races and ethnicities combining for approximately 91 percent of cases in Lake County.

Information on services available in the Red and Orange Tiers is available at these links:

https://covid19.ca.gov/ safer-economy/

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