As pandemic continues, check shelf life of home tests

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 27, 2022

Editor’s Note: Read COVID updates by VashonBePrepared in Spanish and English at tinyurl.com/yan39zeh.

Vashon COVID Monitoring: New Cases Trending Up

The daily count of new cases on Vashon doubled over the last week. For more than a month, the rate of new cases on Vashon had been holding steady at around one new case per day, according to the data dashboard maintained by Public Health – Seattle & King County (PHSKC). However, the last week saw the new case count increase to two cases per day on Vashon.

For King County as a whole, new cases have gone up by more than 19% in the last week to almost 700 cases per day. King County hospitalizations have increased by 119% compared to the previous week. The number of deaths per day has decreased by about 19%, an expected result since the death metric almost always trails the hospitalization metric, usually by a few weeks.

The uptick in COVID cases can be attributed to two factors.

The now-dominant BA.2 subvariant of Omicron is more infectious than previous versions of COVID.

Members of the public are less vigilant about safety measures as perceptions grow that the pandemic is behind us.

At press time, King County was near the upper end of the CDC green/low-risk level of the community transmission metrics. The county has bumped briefly into the yellow/medium risk level in recent weeks.

Keep in mind that all case counts are higher than shown here because official tracking sources have no mechanism to capture unreported positives from home testing, which has recently become widely available at no charge. You can help Vashon MRC monitor COVID levels on the island by calling the helpline if you have a positive test: (844) 469-4554.

Transportation Masking Mandate Mostly Shut Down

The Washington State Ferry System, the major airlines, SeaTac airport, and all our regional transit agencies have done away with their mask requirements. The action follows a federal court decision in Florida that concluded the CDC exceeded its legal authority when it set the transportation masking mandates. It’s important to stay alert to the possibility this guidance may change since legal appeals are underway.

Regardless of the status of the masking mandate in various situations, the CDC still recommends evaluating your risk as you consider whether to wear a mask. Vashon Medical Reserve Corps experts continue to recommend masking as a safety measure:

In risk situations such as indoor spaces with lots of people.

For individuals who are at higher risk if they contract COVID.

For people living in households with members who are at higher risk.

Masking Choices: The Conversation

What if you’re the only person wearing a mask on an airplane, at a party, or some other gathering of people? Here are some tips on how to feel comfortable with your choice for safety.

Think of the mask as an article of clothing. You choose to wear clothing that makes you feel nice. So, if it makes you feel nice to be protected, just think of the mask as a plaid shirt or a fleece. Masks are just clothes.

You can match mask decisions to the situation and your mood. If you are in an area that feels risky, pull out your mask and put it on to feel better — sort of like putting a jacket on if it turns cool.

Keep in mind that masking is up to you, a personal choice. You can deal with masking questions — or teasing or criticism — just as you would any other question about your health decisions. Choose not to rise to the bait and move to another topic.

White House Says 60+ Priority for Second Booster

Most people know by now that anyone 50 or older can get a second booster if they want it. Now a federal health official has suggested anyone 60 or older should put a priority on getting that shot. White House COVID Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha cites “pretty compelling” data from Israel that show significantly reduced infections and deaths for people 60 and older who had the second booster.

Your Home Tests: Expiration Check

Some folks have built up a stock of home COVID rapid tests, a very good thing to do. But the pandemic has been going on for a long time. So there’s a chance that some of your tests might be approaching the expiration date printed on the box. However, the FDA has extended the valid shelf life of many tests based on data from ongoing testing and field use. In other words, a test might be just fine as much as a year after its printed expiration date.

There are dozens of manufacturers and therefore a wide range of expiration date extensions. It would be nice if there was a central online database to check for this information but there isn’t one. So, try this. Do a web search in Google or another search engine of your choice. Type in the manufacturer name (e.g., Binax, iHealth, etc.). Then include the words “expiration date extension” That should give you some links to help you research changes in expiration dates for your stock of home COVID tests.

Latest Vashon COVID Statistics

15 = New cases reported since the last weekly report (23 new cases in 14 days)

812 = Total COVID cases for Vashon residents since the pandemic began.

12 = Patients hospitalized since the pandemic began.

5 = Deaths since the pandemic began.

93.1% = percentage of Vashon residents age 5+ who have completed the primary series, compared to 85.5% of the King County 5+ population.

64.6% = percentage of Vashon residents age 5+ who have added a booster shot to their completed primary series.

For King County, the PHSKC dashboard for the last 30 days says people who are not fully vaccinated are:

1 time more likely to get COVID.

7 times more likely to be hospitalized for COVID.

33 times more likely to die of COVID.

Source: Public Health — Seattle & King County (PHSKC) and Vashon EOC. PHSKC adjusts statistics from time to time as data is refined during its quality control processes. These statistics may not include all recent Vashon cases, due to the lag in posting of data to PHSKC. Home testing data may also be missing because there is no comprehensive system to collect it. Hospitalizations may include some patients who tested positive for COVID on admission for other reasons.

For more resources, visit VashonBePrepared.org or visit the group’s Facebook page. Sign up at tinyurl.com/4smk364m to receive email updates.