Skilled nursing and residential care settings have been among the hardest hit during the pandemic, but there are now signs that is starting to subside after residents and staff were given vaccine priority.
Marin County Public Health Officer Dr. Matt Willis said cases in these facilities have dropped more than ten times since residents got their second doses in January.
"To see these reductions is just really encouraging I think for everyone."
In January, facilities saw an average of 60 COVID-19 cases. That has since dropped to four cases with no current outbreaks.
"A full 85 percent of our deaths in Marin have been among residents in these facilities…at one point we had 28 outbreaks happening at the same time in our 68 facilities - an outbreak being defined as at least three cases - and so obviously you can see how important it was for us to take advantage of the vaccine when it arrived."
The county has now vaccinated 68 percent of its residents who are 75 or older and 45 percent of those 65 and older.
"I’m optimistic for what that means for our community as we roll the vaccine out further and further," said Dr. Willis. "It doesn’t mean we can let down our guard, it means that we can feel more assured that the protection of the vaccine is real."
He added there is still much more work to do to ensure that more county residents can get access to this life-saving vaccine.
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