Submitted by San Juan County.

Since the last update on Friday, Sept. 3, there have been twenty-two new confirmed cases in San Juan County. The current total case count is now 288.

Of these 22 new cases, initial investigations indicate that eight appear to have occurred in fully vaccinated individuals. The numbers continue to show clearly that being vaccinated reduces the likelihood of infection (because the vast majority of island residents are vaccinated, we would expect many more cases in vaccinated individuals if the vaccine did not protect against infection).

There are approximately 12 unvaccinated close contacts of positive cases who are currently in two-week quarantine. Note that vaccinated close contacts do NOT need to quarantine and this number would be far higher if not for the high vaccination rate in San Juan County.

There has been one additional hospitalization since the last report, however, all San Juan County residents have been discharged from the hospital as of this time.

LOPEZ ISLAND: There is one new case on Lopez Island since the last update. There is one positive case under active monitoring on Lopez Island.

ORCAS ISLAND: There are nine new cases on Orcas Island since the last update. There are eight positive cases under active monitoring on Orcas Island.

SAN JUAN ISLAND: There are eight new cases on San Juan Island since the last update. There are four positive cases under active monitoring on San Juan Island.

SHAW ISLAND: There are two new cases on Shaw Island since the last update. There are two positive cases under active monitoring on Shaw Island.

OUTER ISLANDS: There are two new cases in the outer islands since the last update. There are two positive cases under active monitoring in the outer islands. Note that specific outer island will not be named to help maintain patient privacy given the small resident population on the outer islands.

Overall situation

Cases numbers remain stubbornly high. If you are unvaccinated and are interacting with others indoors and unmasked, there is a high likelihood that you will become infected at some point. Once infected, you will almost certainly infect those you live or interact closely with, whether they are vaccinated or not. This is the nature of the delta variant.

If you are vaccinated, your chances of being infected are much lower than if you were not vaccinated. You should still be thoughtful about your interactions with others indoors, especially anyone who has chosen to remain unvaccinated. Hopefully, those you live with who can be vaccinated have done so. If you do become infected, your chances of becoming seriously ill are much less than if you were not vaccinated- but know that there is still a risk, and vaccinated islanders have become ill and experienced serious symptoms.