Arielle Dreher

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COVID-19 contact tracers in Spokane are now screening people for mental health issues

Mon., Jan. 18, 2021

Contact tracers from the Public Health Institute, hired by the Spokane Regional Health District to support case investigations, have been trained in mental health first aid to be prepared to support residents on the other end of the phone line.

News

Questions linger in Washington State about effect of federal vaccine delays

UPDATED: Fri., Jan. 15, 2021

Vaccine production delays at the federal level have left state and local health officials with more questions than answers.

News

What’s the holdup? How vaccination delays are affecting state, local distribution

UPDATED: Fri., Jan. 15, 2021

Vaccination efforts in Washington have been sluggish. About a third of the doses delivered to providers to ward off COVID-19 have been administered.

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News

State health department will text you if you test positive for COVID-19

UPDATED: Thu., Jan. 14, 2021

Washington residents will receive a text from the Department of Health if they test positive for COVID-19 now.

News

Spokane County residents will need to do more to drive COVID-19 rates down

UPDATED: Wed., Jan. 13, 2021

The Spokane Regional Health District confirmed 354 new cases of the virus on Wednesday.

News

Spokane County has second-highest COVID-19 case count in Washington

UPDATED: Tue., Jan. 12, 2021

Spokane County has recorded more than 30,000 COVID-19 cases now. Kootenai Health will resume some surgeries this week.

News

Hurry up and wait: Some rural communities ready to move forward in vaccine phases, while others wait for doses

UPDATED: Tue., Jan. 12, 2021

Some rural communities in the Inland Northwest are ready to move ahead in the state's vaccination phases, after administering vaccines to all the frontline workers who want it.

News

COVID-19 vaccine trial comes to Cheney MultiCare clinic

Tue., Jan. 12, 2021

The Phase 3 clinical trial of the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine is coming to Spokane County.

News

Third wave of COVID-19 cases has led to more deaths in Spokane County

UPDATED: Mon., Jan. 11, 2021

Less than two weeks into the new year, 40 more Spokane County residents have died from COVID-19, following a surge in cases and hospitalizations that began in mid-November and has yet to significantly decline.

News

Who’s next? Long-term care facility residents, staff should get COVID-19 vaccinations this month

UPDATED: Mon., Jan. 11, 2021

Washington health officials have prioritized who is prioritized to receive the first 3 million vaccine doses available in the state.

News

Eastern Washington will stay in Phase 1 of new COVID-19 restrictions; 633 new cases Friday

UPDATED: Fri., Jan. 8, 2021

Virus rates remain high in eastern Washington, and the region will not move past Phase 1 of the governor's new reopening roadmap.

News

Spokane County records more than 1,000 COVID-19 cases since Monday

UPDATED: Thu., Jan. 7, 2021

It's still too early to tell if there will be another holiday surge in virus cases, health officials say.

News >  Idaho

Seniors 70 and older will be part of next wave for COVID-19 vaccinations in Washington

UPDATED: Wed., Jan. 6, 2021

The Washington Department of Health released additional guidance on who gets to be vaccinated next in Washington, but officials caution that it will be a few weeks before all health care workers in the first tier have an opportunity to be vaccinated.

News >  Spokane

Homeless shelters see outbreaks as COVID-19 spreads across Spokane

UPDATED: Wed., Jan. 6, 2021

Several homeless shelters have experienced coronavirus outbreaks in recent weeks, a reflection of the broad and continued community spread of COVID-19 in Spokane.

News

Area hospitals share vaccine doses, Providence opens drive-thru testing site in Spokane Valley

UPDATED: Mon., Jan. 4, 2021

Hospitals in Washington are sharing vaccine doses with other facilities in order to make sure health care workers can all be vaccinated.

News

Difference Maker: When a pandemic came to town, Dr. Bob Lutz had to make tough choices

Thu., Dec. 31, 2020

Prior to 2020, many community members might not have known who the county health officer. A global pandemic changed that, pushing Dr. Bob Lutz into the limelight.

News

When COVID-19 doesn’t go away: Some survivors experience symptoms months after infection

Sun., Dec. 20, 2020

There's no recovery in sight for many COVID-19 patients still suffering from symptoms months into their illness.

News

Inland Northwest health workers started getting COVID-19 shots last week. What’s next?

Sun., Dec. 20, 2020

Health care providers in the Inland Northwest began to get vaccinated for COVID-19 on Friday and throughout the weekend.

News >  Spokane

‘Our COVID-19 ending begins today’: Coronavirus vaccinations begin in Spokane

UPDATED: Fri., Dec. 18, 2020

Nine months after the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in Spokane County, health care workers are beginning to be vaccinated against the virus.

News

Washington’s next Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine shipment will be significantly lower than expected, but hope grows for Moderna

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 17, 2020

Washington will receive less doses of the Pfizer vaccine next week than initially expected.

News

Kootenai Health halts all elective surgeries until January 10; Spokane cases reported Wednesday lowest in a month

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 16, 2020

With the influx of COVID-19 patients, Kootenai Health has paused elective surgeries until Jan. 10, starting Thursday.

News

First COVID-19 vaccine doses arrive in Washington

UPDATED: Mon., Dec. 14, 2020

The first Pfizer vaccine doses arrived in Seattle on Monday, and other sites including in Spokane expect to receive doses this week.

News

More than 1,800 COVID-19 cases confirmed this week in Spokane County, with corrections center outbreak intensifying

UPDATED: Sat., Dec. 12, 2020

Spokane County has the second-highest total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state, second only to King County. Since Monday, local health officials have identified 1,831 new cases of the virus, including about 700 cases linked to the massive outbreak at Airway Heights Corrections Center. There are now 20,707 confirmed cases of the virus in Spokane County residents.

News

Dr. Bob Lutz to join state Department of Health to help with COVID-19 response

UPDATED: Fri., Dec. 11, 2020

The Washington Department of Health has tapped former Health Officer Dr. Bob Lutz for a role in the state's COVID-19 response.

News

Vaccines could arrive in Spokane County next week for high-risk health care workers

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 10, 2020

Spokane County surpassed the 20,000-case mark on Wednesday, as COVID-19 cases continue to surge in the Inland Northwest.