Coronavirus

With our feet firmly and safely planted in 2021, here is a final look at how COVID-19 affected our region and state during the 'Year of the Pandemic'. Some numbers may grow based on reporting standards. Through December 31st, the Chelan-Douglas Health District reports Chelan County experienced 5,155 cases of coronavirus and 31 COVID-related deaths, while Douglas County saw 2,716 positive cases and

Secretary of Health Umair Shah has been on the job for just over a week now, and provided an update on his transition progress Wednesday. Shah said he has been leaning on his fellow Department of Health staff as he adjusts. "We are learning from each other ...

Governor Jay Inslee announced Wednesday a one week extension of his "Stay Safe-Stay Health" proclamation along with statewide restrictions imposed. According to a press release, no changes were made in the proclamation aside from the expiration date ...

Congressman Dan Newhouse spoke Thursday about how he and his wife spent the last couple weeks of November when they were isolating at home with COVID-19. Newhouse tested positive for the virus November 17th. The 4th District Representative said he had a fairly strong case of the virus ...

Governor Jay Inslee gave an update on the state's vaccine outlook Monday after taking part in a call with Vice President Mike Pence on the subject earlier in the day. Inslee said Washington State's first shipments of COVID-19 vaccine are immanent and still on track for mid-December ...

Governor Jay Inslee discussed the launch of the new WA Notify smartphone app Monday, calling it an elegant tool in the fight against the spread of COVID-19. The voluntary app saw 200,000 users sign up in just its first few hours. The app is the product of a joint effort between Google and Apple, and it uses a bluetooth signal emitted by smartphones to detect and remember interactions ...

Chelan Douglas Health Officer Dr. Malcolm Butler described a bleak outlook when discussing the region's exponential spike in COVID cases. With COVID rates expected to rise over the next several weeks and deaths occurring on average 2-3 weeks from when symptoms begin, Butler said things are worse than they've ever been ...

The Grant County Health District reported Wednesday four additional confirmed COVID-19 associated deaths. Three deaths were residents of Long Term Care Facilities and are associated with the outbreaks reported last week. Two victims were women in their 60's and 80's who passed away at McKay Healthcare & Rehab Center in Soap Lake and had been previously reported as pending COVID deaths. An ..

The Wenatchee Wild will cancel it's 2020 season and release all of its players after state and federal COVID restrictions have made it impossible for the team to play hockey this year. General Manager Bliss Littler says the Wild would not have been able to play in the BCHL this year because the Canadian border will be closed at least until the end of the year, and while the team had received appro

Mortality rate has long been a metric brought up by those skeptical of the severity of the COVID-19 outbreak. Chelan Douglas Health Officer Dr. Malcolm Butler was asked during last week's COVID-19 Town Hall about mortality rates and whether they were a fair representation of the severity of the COVID outbreak ...