These Thurston County zip codes have lower vaccination rates. How does your area compare?
Zip codes in south Thurston County have much lower vaccination rates than those in the north, according to a Tuesday report.
The state reports 52% of all county residents have initiated vaccination and 47.5% have been fully vaccinated. However, data released by Thurston County Public Health and Social Services indicates vaccination rates vary significantly by geographic area within the county.
The zip code level breakdown helps inform the county’s vaccination efforts, said PHSS director Schelli Slaughter during a Tuesday Board of County Commissioners meeting.
“We have lots of mobile events planned in the south county region to ensure that we have equitable access to vaccines available in our community,” she said.
The zip code with the highest percentages of vaccinated residents is 98502, which includes west Olympia. The county reports 59% of residents in 98502 have been fully vaccinated and 64% have initiated vaccinations.
Zip code 98501, which includes Olympia’s east side and Tumwater, comes in second with 56% fully vaccinated and 60% at least partially vaccinated. This is the most populous zip code with 44,208 residents, according to the report.
Lacey’s 98503 zip code has the fourth highest percentage of residents initiating vaccinations with 51% but the fifth highest percentage of fully vaccinated residents with 47%, per the report.
Though the county did not disclose percentages for zip code 98531, it appears it may have the lowest vaccination rate in the county. The report indicates the county does not disclose vaccination percentages for zip codes with less than 10 vaccinations.
Divided by Interstate 5 and located along the county’s southern border, 98531 is home to 25,086 residents, per the report. If there really are less than 10 vaccinations in this zip code, then fewer than 0.03% of the population would be vaccinated.
However, the county reports just 122 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the 98531-zip code. As of Tuesday, the county has confirmed a total of 11,099 cases since March 2020.
The lowest vaccination percentage that the county reported can be found in Yelm’s 98597 zip code, which is home to 25,711 residents. About 33% of residents in 98597 have initiated vaccinations while just 28% have been fully vaccinated.
The Yelm area is part of Thurston County’s District 1, which is represented by Commissioner Gary Edwards. However, each commissioner represents parts of southern and northern Thurston County.
Edwards has previously told The Olympian he respects people who are choosing to sit out getting vaccinated because he values individual choice.
He also has said he wishes the state would count people who have recovered from COVID-19 rather than just focus on vaccinated people when considering immunity levels.
The state Department of Health recommends everyone who is eligible, even people who have recovered from COVID-19, get vaccinated.
People who have recovered from COVID-19 are unlikely to be reinfected in the 90 days after being initially infected, according to the DOH. However, the DOH notes it’s unclear how long this natural immunity lasts.
In Yelm’s 98597 zip code, the county has confirmed 1,171 COVID-19 cases since March 2020, per the report.
Commissioners Carolina Mejia and Tye Menser have expressed concern about the county missing its vaccination goals and have indicated a desire to engage the wider community to increase vaccination rates, The Olympian previously reported.
Slaughter confirmed on Tuesday that some vaccinations among the county’s military population have not been factored into the state’s vaccination percentages.
As of June 28, 11,712 Department of Defense residents in Thurston County had initiated vaccinations while 10,848 had been fully vaccinated, according to the county’s report.
This means an additional 4.02% of the total county population have been at least partially vaccinated and 3.73% have been fully vaccinated, per the report.
Thurston County PHSS is continuing to offer free vaccination events every week. Events are listed on their coronavirus vaccine information website. Although no longer required, people are still encouraged to pre-register for these events through the state’s PrepMod website.
Residents also can find appointments at local providers such as pharmacies by visiting the state’s Vaccine Locator website. Many supermarket pharmacies are taking walk-ins for vaccines.
Those who have difficulty scheduling appointments online can call the Department of Health vaccine hotline at 888-856-5816 or the Thurston County Public Health and Social Services line at 360-867-2610. Information for Spanish speakers is available at these numbers as well.
People interested in volunteering at PHSS vaccine events can sign up through the United Way of Thurston County website. Anyone with questions or concerns about volunteering can call 360-943-2773.
This story was originally published July 8, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
