[Editor’s note: Noozhawk’s weekly COVID-19 email newsletter is delivered to subscribers on Wednesdays. You can sign up here. We are republishing the newsletters on the website so more readers have access to them.]
Welcome to Noozhawk’s Weekly COVID-19 Briefing.
I’m Noozhawk staff writer Grace Kitayama with the latest COVID-19 news in Santa Barbara County.
This newsletter is a way for Noozhawk readers to get important updates in one place.
It is emailed out every Wednesday, for free, to everyone who subscribes.
Here’s What We Know
» The numbers of people testing positive for COVID-19 and hospital patients testing positive continues to decline in Santa Barbara County.
» There were 17 coronavirus-positive patients in local hospitals as of Monday, including two in intensive-care units.
» There have been three coronavirus-related deaths in the county this week, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department reported on its Community Data Dashboard.
» People age 12 and older are eligible for and recommended to get the bivalent booster vaccine shot that targets Omicron variants of the coronavirus.
» To find COVID-19 vaccination providers, visit the Public Health Department website and the vaccines.gov search portal.
International Travel Recommendations
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will no longer keep a country-by-country list of coronavirus-related travel advisories, according to news reports.
A notice will only be posted by the CDC if there is major change or concern, such as an outbreak in a country.
Countries have their own coronavirus-related entry and exit requirements, and the CDC recommends getting up-to-date with COVID-19 vaccines before traveling, and considering getting tested before travel and after arrival.
COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker
About 28.8 million California residents are fully vaccinated.
That makes a statewide COVID-19 vaccination rate of 72.2%, a higher rate than Santa Barbara County’s rate of 69.4%.
Got Questions?
Readers have sent us dozens of questions about pandemic-related issues. Please send yours to news@noozhawk.com and we’ll try to include them in future newsletters and Noozhawk Q&As.
Reader Resources
» Find a COVID-19 vaccine provider near you on the Vaccine Finder search function of https://www.vaccines.gov/search/. You can search for providers by location and by specific vaccine available (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Novavax and Johnson & Johnson). You can also find providers on the county website, publichealthsbc.org/vaccine, or at myturn.ca.gov. Some facilities offer walk-ups as well as appointments.
» Text your ZIP code to GETVAX (438829) for a list of vaccine providers in English, or text your ZIP code to VACUNA (822862) for a list in Spanish.
» There are free COVID-19 testing facilities around the county.
» Find more local pandemic-related information on the Public Health Department website.
» Click here for Noozhawk’s complete Coronavirus Crisis coverage.
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— Noozhawk staff writer Grace Kitayama can be reached at gkitayama@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.