The COVID state of emergency order originally declared on Feb. 29, 2020 is now officially over. Although the COVID-19 pandemic remains ongoing, the governor’s office said it is no longer an emergency thanks to vaccination efforts, medical treatments and the mitigation efforts of Washingtonians. The emergency orders ended Monday include:
-COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement
-Safe Workers
-Children and Youth Mental Health Crisis
Restrictions on Travelers
-Safeguarding Public Trust and Stability in Local Health Jurisdictions
-Public Records Act
–Contact Tracing
-Annual Leave and Pay Procedures
-“WASHINGTON READY”
-Higher Education
-K-12 Schools
-COVID-19 State of Emergency
According to the governor’s office, the emergency orders contributed to Washington state having one of the lowest COVID-19 death rates in the nation. The remaining COVID-19 emergency orders, including the statewide state of emergency declaration, ended Monday, Oct. 31 after more than two years.
According to the records, Washington currently has the sixth-lowest death rate nationwide, and all but two counties currently have low community transmission levels. Ferry and Pacific Counties have a community transmission level of Medium.
Last month the governor announced the ending date for the remaining emergency orders. Things have been moving along those lines for a while. Nearly 75% of Inslee’s 85 emergency orders were lifted before his announcement in September and an additional 13 healthcare-related orders ended last week.
“While we are grateful for the thousands of lives we saved together, thousands of lives were also lost, and many more were changed forever,” Inslee said. “The past two and a half years have been some of the hardest anyone can remember. Through the loss and suffering, we did not lose faith and we did not abandon each other. Working together, we saved countless thousands of lives.”
The DOH’s masking order will continue in health care and long-term care facilities, as well as some correctional facilities. However, the DOH said it is actively reviewing and determining which situations they will continue to apply and plan to give another update in mid-Nov.
