MEDICAL LAKE, Wash. — Eastern State Hospital in Medical Lake is beginning COVID-19 vaccinations for its workers at highest risk of exposure to the virus.
Doses of Moderna's coronavirus vaccine arrived at the hospital on Monday, Dec. 28 and vaccinations began the same day, according to a press release from the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS).
Seven employees at Eastern State Hospital currently have coronavirus. A total of 72 staff members have contracted the virus in the past several months, the press release said.
According to the press release, a nurse who worked at Eastern State Hospital for more than three decades succumbed to COVID-19 in April after contracting the virus outside of work.
When KREM first reached out to Eastern State Hospital in April, officials would not comment on the nurse's cause of death. The family confirmed that he passed away after contracting coronavirus.
There is currently one active coronavirus case among patients at the hospital, according to the press release. A total of 19 clients have recovered from COVID-19 at the facility.
The vaccine is voluntary for DSHS staff. The agency has a website that tracks COVID-19 cases among staff and clients at 24/7 facilities.
Three patients at Western State Hospital in Lakewood, Washington, have died from COVID-19. The most recent death was announced on Monday in a patient who had been at a local hospital for several weeks and succumbed to the virus on Christmas Eve, according to a press release.
Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine arrived at Western State Hospital last week and more than 600 frontline workers have already been vaccinated with the first dose.