County trending in right direction toward Phase 2

The west region — which includes Grays Harbor, Pacific, Lewis and Thurston counties — of the state’s Roadmap to Recovery still doesn’t meet the requirements to move into Phase 2, but is trending in the right direction.

The state Department of Health report released Friday shows of the four key metrics, the region met three, falling short in only the category “Trend in 14-day rate of new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 population.”

None of the state’s regions qualified to move into Phase 2 in Friday’s report and the state remains in Phase 1.

To move into Phase 2, each region must show a 10% decrease in cases per 100,000 population over the previous two weeks when compared to the two weeks prior; a 10% decrease in new COVID-19 hospital admission rate per 100,000 population over two weeks; ICU bed occupancy of less than 90%; and coronavirus test positivity rate of less than 10%.

Friday had the West Region with a 30% decrease in cases per 100,000 population over the previous two weeks, considered “decreasing or low;” 7% decrease in the trend in 14-day rate of new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 population, described as “flattening;” 81% occupancy of ICU beds, “decreasing or low;” and 8% coronavirus positive test rate. All of these numbers are improvements from the first report issued Jan. 8.