Southwest district expands COVID-19 vaccine eligibility, Idaho adds over 350 cases
%20(1)%20(2)%20(1).jpg)
Effective immediately, everyone older than 16 in the six counties that make up Southwest District Health — including Canyon, home to Nampa and Caldwell — is eligible to receive the vaccine, according to a news release Thursday from the health district.
Southwest joined most of Idaho’s other health districts this week in speeding up the vaccine rollout. Central District Health, which includes Ada and Elmore counties, and the South Central district accelerated their timelines over the past two days as well.
The state of Idaho had set Monday, April 5, as the day all residents 16 and older would be eligible, but now all health districts except Eastern have made that happen already. That district houses Clark, Fremont, Jefferson, Madison, Teton and Bonneville counties, and has been home to increasing caseloads the past two weeks.
FEMA TO PAY COVID-19 FUNERAL EXPENSES
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will help Idahoans pay for funeral expenses related to COVID-19 deaths, according to the Idaho Office of Emergency Management.
In a policy finalized late in March, residents who incurred funeral expenses after Jan. 20, 2020 “for a death attributed to COVID-19” will be eligible to receive up to $9,000.
“We are grateful for the steps FEMA is taking to assist the citizens of our state,” Gov. Brad Little said in a news release. “While many are grieving across the state, it is comforting to know there are resources available to ease the financial and emotional burdens of those who lost a loved one to COVID-19.”
FEMA will create an 800 phone number for applicants in the coming weeks, according to the release. Potential applicants will need an official death certificate, funeral expense documents “and/or proof of funds received from other sources specifically for use toward funeral costs.”
Visit www.fema.gov for more information.
NEW CORONAVIRUS CASES
Idaho saw a smaller increase on Thursday in new cases than the day before, according to data from the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
There were 357 new COVID-19 cases (confirmed and probable) added to the state’s total, pushing the state’s seven-day moving average to 286.6. The average has remained below 300 for nine consecutive days.
The state added more than 450 cases on Wednesday.
Ada County added 90 new cases on Thursday, pushing its total to 49,279, after hitting triple digits the previous two days.
Counties in East Idaho continued to show troublesome numbers relative to their population. Bonneville County added 60 cases and has a seven-day moving incidence rate (number of cases per 100,000 people) of 41.3, the second-highest in the state. It trails only neighboring Madison County, which added 23 new cases and now has an incidence rate of 41.5.
Only one new death was reported in the state, an individual in their 70s in Canyon County, whose death total is now 288. The state’s total since the pandemic arrived in Idaho last March is 1,963.
Health and Welfare data showed that the state’s test positivity rate — the percentage of total tests that are positive for COVID-19 — remained at 5.1%, same as last week. That’s barely above the 5% benchmark that experts say signals a community has infections under control.
The other counties reporting new cases Thursday were Bannock (27 new, 8,441 total), Bingham (8 new, 4,666 total), Blaine (2 new, 2,268 total), Boise (5 new, 327 total), Bonner (6 new, 3,104 total), Boundary (2 new, 845 total), Butte (1 new, 206 total), Canyon (44 new, 25,631 total), Caribou (3 new, 660 total), Cassia (4 new, 2905 total), Clark (1 new, 57 total), Elmore (5 new, 1,777 total), Fremont (4 new, 1,087 total), Gem (1 new, 1,733 total), Gooding (2 new, 1,288 total), Jefferson (16 new, 2,832 total), Kootenai (28 new, 17,213 total), Latah (5 new, 2,922 total), Minidoka (1 new, 2,315 total), Nez Perce (5 new, 3,484 total), Power (1 new, 649 total), Shoshone (3 new, 1,050 total), Teton (8 new, 1,166 total), Twin Falls (2 new, 9,140 total).
DAILY DETAILS
Vaccine doses administered in Idaho: 731,574, according to Health and Welfare. Of those, 291,285 people have been fully vaccinated.
Overall hospitalizations: Health and Welfare reports that there have been 7,601 hospitalizations of people with COVID-19, 1,303 admissions to the ICU and 10,067 health care workers infected. Hospital and health care numbers are based on cases with completed investigations into contacts, not the full number of positives.
St. Luke’s Health System: As of March 31, the health system was reporting 27 patients in its hospitals with confirmed COVID-19 out of 476 patients overall. The health system reported a 14-day coronavirus test positivity rate of 5%.
Saint Alphonsus Health System: As of March 31, the health system was reporting 25 patients in its hospitals with confirmed COVID-19 out of 362 patients overall. The health system reported a 14-day coronavirus test positivity rate of 9.9%.
Boise School District: Reported confirmed cases since March 30: Boise High (4), Borah High (1), East Jr. High (1).
West Ada School District: Reported confirmed cases for March 19 - April 1: Centennial High (2), Eagle High (1), Idaho Fine Arts Academy (1), Moutain View (2), Victory Middle (1), Pepper Ridge Elementary (1), Siena Elementary (1).
Total COVID-19 cases by county (confirmed + probable): Ada 49,279, Adams 333, Bannock 8,441, Bear Lake 367, Benewah 646, Bingham 4,666, Blaine 2,268, Boise 327, Bonner 3,104, Bonneville 14,157, Boundary 845, Butte 206, Camas 71, Canyon 25,631, Caribou 660, Cassia 2,905, Clark 57, Clearwater 1,029, Custer 242, Elmore 1,777, Franklin 1,147, Fremont 1,087, Gem 1,733, Gooding 1,288, Idaho 1,174, Jefferson 2,832, Jerome 2,535, Kootenai 17,213, Latah 2,922, Lemhi 516, Lewis 385, Lincoln 494, Madison 6,890, Minidoka 2,315, Nez Perce 3,484, Oneida 347, Owyhee 1,038, Payette 2,453, Power 649, Shoshone 1,050, Teton 1,166, Twin Falls 9,140, Valley 826, Washington 1,198.
This story was originally published April 1, 2021 at 9:21 PM.
