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Tillamook County Wellness Page 8

Headlight Herald

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2021

VOL. 134, NO. 7 • $1.50

TILLAMOOK, OREGON • WWW.TILLAMOOKHEADLIGHTHERALD.COM

COVID-19 vaccine update: 65 and older to use eligibility form T

Hilary Dorsey Staff Writer

illamook County is at 352 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases, as of Thursday, Feb. 11, according to the Oregon Health Authority. Tillamook County had 13 new confirmed positive and presumptive cases of COVID-19, from Jan. 24 to Feb. 6, the Tillamook County Health Department reported. The county will remain in Lower

Risk for the next two weeks, effective Friday, Feb. 12. If cases increase by 30 or more cases in the next two weeks, the county would be at risk of moving up in risk level effective Feb. 26. Staff in the three public school districts have been vaccinated, Emergency Coordinator Ed Colson said during a Tillamook County Board of Commissioners meeting Wednesday, Feb. 10. “A total of 2,310 Tillamook

County residents have been vaccinated so far,” Colson said. Because of high call volumes, all residents 65 years and older are asked to use the eligibility form on the health center’s website at https:// tillamookchc.org/coronavirus/vaccines/ or access the form directly at https://bit.ly/2LEZucy. The health department is no longer able to schedule vaccine appointments by phone or email. If you need assistance filling out the form,

call 503-842-3914 or email tcchc@ co.tillamook.or.us. Colson said once you submit the form, you should receive confirmation that it was received. Every resident on the form will be contacted and can receive a vaccine. It may take several weeks to receive a vaccine. “We have heard from Oregon Heath Authority that the allocation we receive is supposed to be consistent throughout the week,” Colson

Superbowl Spam

Tillamook Eagles #244, First Annual Spam Carving Contest, held on Superbowl Sunday was a success. Kahna Henry, Lodge manager presenting the “SPAM” Trophy to 1st place winner Joanne West from Tillamook. Ms. West carved an entry out of Spam of an Anchor with Star Fish.

ORIGINAL OHA says ‘breakthrough’ cases are no surprise Some pharmacies begin receiving doses

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Zack Demars Country Media

regon health officials are now reporting four cases of COVID-19 in individuals who have been fully vaccinated against the virus. The cases, called “breakthrough cases,” come as no surprise, as no vaccine for any disease is completely effective, according to Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the state epidemiologist who spoke to reporters in a briefing Friday. “These breakthrough cases are not unexpected,” Sidelinger said. “No vaccine provides 100% protection, and clinical trials of both vaccines presently in use included breakthrough cases. In those cases, even though the participants got COVID, the vaccines reduced the severity of illness.” Those clinical trials have shown that around 95% of people who get vaccinated don’t end up catching COVID-19 — and that those who do catch it have significantly milder symptoms than if they hadn’t, Sidelinger said. Officials from the Oregon Health Authority say two of the cases were reported in Yamhill County, and two were reported in Lane County. That’s just four breakthrough cases of over 177,000 people the state’s reporting are fully vaccinated against the virus. Oregon is one of the first states in the nation to report breakthrough cases, since most states have only just begun to have people who fall into the “fully vaccinated” category, which comes two weeks after their second dose of the vaccine. Still, Sidelinger said the vaccine is still going to be the state’s most important tool in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

“More Oregonians are getting vaccinated by the day, and the existing vaccines offer unprecedented levels of effectiveness,” Sidelinger said. “The quickest and most direct route out of this pandemic is to get vaccinated while you’re eligible.” Vaccinations will need to ramp up to about 25,000 per day statewide in order to achieve community immunity by Autumn, according to OHA Director Patrick Allen. While some days the state has already hit that target, vaccine dose supply is still far below the state’s capacity, Allen said. He added that the state is slightly behind its expected timeline for vaccinating teachers and educators across the state. Three weeks ago, OHA projected it would have allocated 59% of the vaccine doses needed for educators by this point, but it’s only reached about 50%, Allen said. In positive news, Sidelinger reported Friday the state has returned to levels of daily virus transmission not seen since the fall, allowing some counties across the state to reopen some businesses for the first time in months. “These decreases are a testament to the actions all Oregonians have taken to slow the spread of COVID-19,” Sidelinger said. Vaccine availability expands The state is also getting more help in its race to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine. Allen said Friday the state’s weekly dose allocation would be increasing to about 82,000 doses, up from the previously announced 75,000 a week. Select pharmacies across the state have begun receiving and administering doses of

the vaccine. According to Stephen Certo, who directs pharmacy operations for Safeway and Albertsons stores in Oregon, that set of pharmacies includes over 100 Safeway and Albertsons locations across the state. “We as a company, we’re thrilled to be a part of it, and be able to provide vaccines to the communities we serve. So we are really excited,” Certo said Friday. Residents can see available locations and sign up for vaccination appointments at www.albertsons.com/pharmacy/covid-19. html or www.safeway.com/pharmacy/covid-19.html. Some Costco stores and Health Mart Pharmacies have also received doses of the vaccine and will begin scheduling appointments. OHA’s Allen confirmed that, starting Feb. 15, individuals over 75 will become eligible to receive the vaccine. While the state’s projected increase in weekly doses is a good sign, the effects won’t be immediate. “That’s good news, but we know those doses are still months away,” Allen said. What’s more, even the very small number of breakthrough cases signals Oregonians must continue to keep their guard up against the virus, even if they’ve been fully vaccinated against the virus. He pointed to the spike in cases the state saw during the spring and summer, as some activities began reopening after the pandemic’s initial lockdown. “I think we all need to remember that period, and remind ourselves we’re still not going back to the way things were the way before,” Allen said. “We’re going to need to continue to wear masks, to socially distance.”

Merkley says impeachment trial is ‘constitutional responsibility’ Senate acquits Donald Trump of inciting at the Capitol

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Zack Demars Country Media

enators were focused as they considered evidence this week in the sec-

Rockaway author draws on early baseball in recent novel R

EXCLUSIVE

ond impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump, according to Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley. “The mood was very somber, and very focused. Virtually all of us had been in that chamber on the day of the assault,” the Democratic senator told reporters at a press conference Thursday. “I don’t think most senators had realized how close we were to that higher level of disaster. So, it was very focused attention, very rapt attention as these videos were shown.” Throughout the week, managers from

the House of Representatives presented evidence in support of their charge that Trump incited an insurrection at the capitol Jan. 6. The evidence included the former president’s tweets and statements claiming the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” from him and his supporters. Senators also reviewed chilling security camera footage of rioters storming the capitol building and

n See MERKLEY, Page 2

said. Colson said pharmacies in Tillamook County will soon be able to administer vaccines. More information will be coming when available. Colson said the department is working with vaccine partners on messaging about the second vaccine dose to put information out about expected symptoms. Send comments to: headlightreporter@countrymedia.net

Hilary Dorsey Staff Writer

ockaway Beach resident Adam Phillips recently had a novel published. The book, “Manifest,” takes place largely in Tillamook and Rockaway Beach. “Manifest” was published by Montag Press out of the Bay Area. It is available on Amazon and Phillips hopes it will soon be on the shelves of local bookstores such as The Little Crow and Cloud & Leaf Bookstore. Phillips has lived in Rockaway off an on for six years, along with his Adam Phillips wife Stephanie and sons Ezra and Harlan. “As soon as we arrived, I became interested in the local history, and you see a lot of that represented in the book, with the majority of the action taking place in Rockaway, Tillamook and Portland,” Phillips said. Phillips said the initial idea of “Manifest” centered around a true story that took place in Wyoming in the early 20th century. A warden ended up housing several former pro and semi-pro baseball players on death row in the prison. After actively recruiting several more former players from other institutions, the warden began taking his squad out on barnstorming tours, betting on their success. After a while, the underperforming players found their names moved up along the schedule of executions. “I’ve always been a huge baseball fan, with a particular affinity for its earliest existence,” Phillips said. “The pastime used to be so much seedier, a decidedly counterculture way to make a living, and the players seemed so much more colorful and interesting. Nowadays, as with so many things, the MLB has become so specialized and beholden to money that the game is less spectacle and more business, with the bottom line of each win representing a certain dollar amount in ticket sales and merchandise.” Phillips added that he believes baseball games are now more efficient, but less entertaining, as with the players. “With so much of them getting into fulltime training at a young age, at the expense of other interests, and so much team control over their personal lives, so much care given to their media presence…you just don’t get the wonderful weirdos and larger-than-life characters that defined the first several decades of the game.” The novel could not have been written anywhere other than Rockaway Beach, Phillips said. His family’s house is in the woods. “With the pounding waves and the mist coming up through the trees, and that feeling of the epic, vast darkness at the westernmost edge of the world runs through every sentence,” Phillips said. “I look forward to hosting some readings/signing when the world gets back to a place where that’s allowed,” Phillips said. “I’d be more than happy to mail signed copies to anyone wanting to purchase from me directly.” You can purchase the novel directly from Phillips by emailing adam.mendax@gmail.com Phillips has two other novels completed. One is a small-town horror novel called “El Rey Serpiente” that is under contract with Progressive Press. The other is a superhero novel based on his experiences as a cancer patient, which he is currently sending out to agents and publishers. Send comments to: headlightreporter@countrymedia.net


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