COVID cases, hospitalizations dropping in Western WA
Coronavirus cases are sharply declining in Western Washington and hospitalizations are showing signs of slowing as the surge of omicron cases that has stressed hospitals could be subsiding, health officials say. According to the state Department of Health’s most recent complete data, Washington recorded a seven-day average of about 1,543 infections per 100,000 people in mid-January. A week prior, the state’s average was about 1,720 per 100,000. Continue reading at The Seattle Times. (Amanda Snyder)
WA cannabis revenue could go to communities hurt by war on drugs
Washington’s governor wants to give hundreds of millions in cannabis tax revenues to people hindered by the war on drugs. Gov. Jay Inslee’s supplemental budget, released in December, includes a plan to redistribute $125 million annually to communities facing social and economic disparities resulting from inequities in, for example, the enforcement of criminal laws and penalties for drug sales. The community reinvestment plan focuses on things like violence prevention and reentry services for formerly incarcerated people. Continue reading at Crosscut. (Jason Redmond)
Hearing aids could soon be covered by insurance under proposed WA legislation
Jill Bujnevicie’s son Hugo was 3 years old when he was diagnosed with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. Although he was a typical child and had passed the newborn hearing screening, Bujnevicie and her husband noticed that Hugo’s speech was “a little different” than his older brother, Enzo. A hearing test confirmed what the initial screening at birth had missed: genetic and permanent hearing loss that he had been born with. Continue reading at The Olympian. (Shauna Sowersby)
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