CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND: Feels Like Flu? Get Tested For COVID As Washington State Influenza Season At ‘Zero Percent’

By Press release submission

Nov 14, 2020

City Of Port Townsend issued the following announcement on Nov. 12.

Public health precautions taken to curb coronavirus are working against influenza. As of Nov. 9, Jefferson County Public Health Officer Dr. Tom Locke said spread of the influenza strain is at “zero percent.”

“There is simply no influenza in Washington State right now,” Locke said during his weekly report to the Jefferson Board of County Commissioners. Here in Jefferson County, 99% of tests for influenza are returning as negative with some common cold viruses present, he said.

”The levels are much lower than we would expect at this time of year and that’s because of the masking and distancing and extra hygiene precautions that people are taking,” Locke said, in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Locke has previously recommended that people be immunized with the influenza vaccine, which is widely available.

Influenza is “a killer virus,” Dr. Locke said, with the strain’s severity different each year. Still, it is nowhere near as deadly as COVID-19. At least 240,000 Americans are confirmed victims of COVID-19 in less than 11 months. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the number of Americans with influenza-related deaths was estimated 34,000 in 2018-2019 and 61,000 in 2017-2018.

FEELS LIKE FLU? GET TESTED FOR COVID

People experiencing “any respiratory illness” such as fever with cough, sore throat or nasal congestion, “anyone with cold symptoms should be tested for COVID-19,” Locke advised.

There are three main symptoms of coronavirus. If you get just one of them, you should schedule a test for COVID-19:

--New and continuous cough - coughing a lot for more than an hour, or having three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours;

--Fever: a temperature at or above 100.4F or 37.8C;

--Change in smell or taste - either you cannot taste or smell anything, or these senses are different than normal.

TESTING IN JEFFERSON COUNTY

Anyone in Jefferson County exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID-19, or who may have come in contact with someone who has the virus, are encouraged to contact Jefferson Healthcare in Port Townsend and ask for a test. The first step is to call Jefferson Healthcare’s dedicated COVID-19/Respiratory Illness Nurse Consult Line 360-344-3094, staffed 8 am to 5 pm, seven days a week. Jefferson Healthcare’s drive-thru clinic in Port Townsend is open every day by appointment only. COVID-19 tests are also being done at Jefferson Healthcare clinics in Port Ludlow and Quilcene.

The vast majority of people who contract the virus report zero to mild symptoms. However, for some people, it can mean an almost immediate trip to the hospital and can be fatal. There have been no deaths connected to COVID-19 in Jefferson County.

CDC: Similarities and Differences between Flu and COVID-19

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/symptoms/flu-vs-covid19.htm

Children and COVID-19: State-Level Data Report

https://services.aap.org/.../children-and-covid-19-state.../

Washington State Department of Health Coronavirus Dashboard

https://www.doh.wa.gov/.../NovelCoronavirus.../DataDashboard

Jefferson County Public Health COVID-19 webpage

https://www.co.jefferson.wa.us/1429/COVID-19

John Hopkins University of Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

Centers for Disease Control

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html