South Snohomish News

Snohomish County health officials the county isn't ready to move into Phase 2 of recovery at the beginning of June.

In Phase 2, outdoor recreation can be increased, hair salons can open, small groups of five or fewer can gather and restaurants can seat at 50% capacity. Fourteen counties were approved to move to Phase 2 as of May 22 and 11 others were eligible to apply, according to KING-TV. 

Chris Spitters, Snohomish Health District Health Officer, told KING-TB the county will likely be ready to apply for the variance sometime during the month of June.

Five criteria are evaluated by the state of Washington to determine whether a county is ready to move on to the next phase of reopening. One criteria is a reduction in the number of new cases. For Snohomish County,  the maximum number of new cases would have to be 82 in two weeks. Over the last 14 days, Snohomish County saw 308 new cases, KING-TV reported. 

Testing capacity must also increase enough so about 50 tests are administered for every positive case. Spitters told KING-TV Snohomish County is at 20-25 tests for every positive case. The county is expanding testing capacity, hoping to add 1,500 to the current 2,500 weekly tests.

The county also currently has only one-fourth of the employees it needs to adequately conduct contact tracing. Spitters told KING-TV those remaining jobs will be filled by National Guard members and through CARES Act funding.

Snohomish County long-term care outbreak rates are within state guidelines. Snohomish County's hospital capacity is also adequate. The state requires they have at least 20% surge capacity and a 14-day supply of personal protective equipment.

Spitters told KING-TV the way for the county to be ready to progress to Phase 2 is for citizens to limit the number of people they come in contact with and following the stay-at-home order.