Eastern region of Washington reopening plan remaining in Phase 1, two regions in state moving to Phase 2

0

Spokane will remain in Phase 1 of Washington’s Roadmap to Recovery. Governor Jay Inslee has made a few changes today, but for most of the state things are going to remain the same for the time being.

Only two of the eight regions in the state will move to Phase 2 on Monday.

West (Snohomish, King, Pierce)Puget Sound (Grays Harbor, Pacific, Thurston, Lewis)

Though indoor dining in Spokane is still a no-go, Inslee is changing the re-opening plan in a couple of ways that could make it easier to get back to some sort of normalcy in a limited capacity.

“We are getting closer to finding our way out of this mess, but we aren’t there yet,” Inslee said. “We have sacrificed too much to let our frustrations get the best of us now when the finish line is in sight, however distant that may seem in our field of vision.”

Now regions only have to meet three of the four public health metrics below to move into Phase 2.

Trend in case rate: Trend in 14-day rate of new COVID-19 cases per 100K populationTrend in hospital admissions rate: Trend in 14-day rate of new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100K populationPercent ICU occupancy: Average 7-day percent occupancy of ICU staffed bedsPercent positivity: 7-day percent positive of COVID-19 testsStarting next week these metrics will be measured every two weeks as opposed to every week. According to Inslee, the metrics help determine current trends of COVID-19 in each region and will ultimately help local health care systems work effectively to respond to the virus.


 

FOX28 Spokane©