Surge in COVID cases, recoveries
The Hoopa Valley Tribe is continuing to experience a surge in COVID-19 case counts, but is seeing a simultaneous increase in people recovering from the disease.
The K’ima:w Medical Center reported 28 new cases of COVID-19 for the Hoopa Valley Tribe since Sunday for a total active case count of 40 as of noon Thursday, which was a drop from a recent high of 45 on Tuesday. The total number of cases reported has been 234 with 194 recoveries, no deaths and five hospitalizations, though none currently.
“We had a lot of people come into recovered status overnight,” Hoopa Valley Tribal Public Health Representative Dr. Eva Smith said during a Wednesday KIDE radio broadcast. “And so even though we did have a rise in cases, we had more people going into recovery status than we had new cases so overall our active case count went down.”
The center reported five new cases on Thursday that were all known contacts of someone with an infection. Large family gatherings have been a primary driver in the surge, Smith said.
The medical center’s chief executive officer, Dr. Emmett Chase, said the interesting thing about the recent surge in cases was that among the positive cases were a seven-week-old infant, “the youngest case so far,” and one individual who had been fully vaccinated, though Smith said that was still under investigation.
“He was vaccinated twice and he had 14 days out from his second vaccination,” Chase said. “He still got infected, so the vaccine doesn’t necessarily protect you from getting infected; it protects you from having a severe case of infection requiring hospitalization or requiring the intensive care unit.”
As of Thursday, the medical center reported it has “administered 640 primary doses of the Moderna vaccine and 460 booster doses” and Smith said Wednesday the center had 300 doses of vaccine available.
The center is planning a mass vaccination clinic for Hoopa residents over the age of 18 for next Thursday.
Hoopa Valley Tribal
Chairman Byron Nelson said during the Wednesday KIDE broadcast said about 50% of tribal employees are choosing not to get vaccinated even though they have the option.
The tribal council made the decision to attempt to reopen safely “despite high levels of COVID in the community” after a one-week closure in order to let tribal members once again access services, the tribe’s senior attorney Karen Pennington said during the broadcast.
If a department is experiencing a spike in COVID-19 cases, Pennington said the managers will be directed to exclude workers who can’t prove they’ve been vaccinated until there has been a reduction in cases.
A San Francisco court recently stated the executive branch has a difficult decision to impose restrictions that will cripple
businesses that are already struggling or to loosen restrictions and risk an increase in COVID-19 spread, which is the same situation the tribe is in, Pennington said.
What protocols are implemented in each tribal department, such as staggering shifts or working remotely, will depend on how things normally operate in that department, Smith said.
“Each department is so very different,” Smith said. “What services are provided are different and that has to be evaluated case by case, department by department.”
By the numbers
Humboldt County All figures represent those tested in the county. Numbers current as of March 4: 3,246: Total number of positive cases 33: Deaths
134: Total number of hospitalizations 3,097: Total number of recovered cases 75,076: Total number of tests completed
County vaccine numbers (updated every Wednesday)
31,803: Total vaccine doses administered 10,435: Individuals fully vaccinated 7.68%: % of population fully vaccinated 10,933: Individuals partially vaccinated 8.04%: % of population partially vaccinated Source: Humboldt County Joint Information Center
California Numbers represent those in California affected by the virus as reported by the state. Numbers current as of March 3: 3,488,467: Tested positive 53,048: Deaths Source: California Department of Public Health