PACIFIC COUNTY — Reported cases of covid-19 in Pacific County have continued to decline in recent weeks, but four deaths attributed to the virus so far already in September have put a damper on any celebration about covid’s loosening grip on the county.

These latest fatalities come just as President Joe Biden declared in an interview aired Sept. 19 on “60 Minutes” that “The pandemic is over. We still have a problem with covid. We’re still doing a lot of work on it … but the pandemic is over. if you notice, no one’s wearing masks. Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape. And so I think it’s changing.”

With just 24 confirmed cases of covid-19 being reported in Pacific County from Sept. 1-14, the case rate per 100,000 people stood at only 102 following the latest update from the county health department last week. It’s the lowest the case rate has been since early spring, in the aftermath of the initial Omicron wave that winter — by far the worst wave of the pandemic both locally and nationally.

But any good feelings about progress that has been made against covid this month has been blunted by the loss of four more residents to the virus, bringing the pandemic total to 67 in the county. The four deaths in the first two weeks of September are the most in any two-week span since Jan. 27 to Feb. 9, at the height of the Omicron wave.

Ages of the individuals who most recently passed away were not immediately available.

Get boosted

And while cases are down at the moment, health officials are urging individuals to take advantage of the newly available bivalent booster ahead of the fall and winter seasons, when the virus has proven to be at its most transmissible. The Omicron-specific booster was rolled out last week in Pacific County, with the approved Pfizer and Moderna shots available at vaccine clinics held on both ends of the county.

The updated bivalent shots are designed to target both the original strain of the virus and the Omicron variant that has been dominant in the U.S. and the world since last winter. Side effects for this booster have not shown to differ from previous covid shots, and most often include redness and swelling where the shot was given, as well as occasional fatigue, headache and muscle soreness.

The shots are available to those 12 and older who completed their initial vaccine series or received their last booster at least two months prior. People who recently had a covid-19 infection are recommended to wait three months from their first symptoms or positive test before getting a booster.

For a list of upcoming opportunities to get vaccinated, go to www.pacificcountycovid19.com/get-vaccinated.

Slowly but surely, the vaccination rate in Pacific County continues to rise. Nearly 70% of the total population — 69.9% — have received at least one covid-19 vaccine dose, and about 62.5% have completed their initial vaccine series. Of that fully vaccinated group, about 55% have received one or more booster doses.

Among Washington’s 39 counties, Pacific County’s fully vaccinated rate ranks 12th overall and 3rd highest among the 21 counties with a population of less than 75,000. San Juan and King counties have the highest fully vaccinated rates, at 82%, and Stevens County in northeast Washington has the lowest rate, at less than 36%.