Washington Still Falling Short Of 70 Percent Vaccine Threshold

OLYMPIA, WA — The vaccination effort marches on in Washington, though not at the rate most had hoped for.

Back on May 13, Gov. Jay Inslee announced plans to fully reopen the state once 70 percent of Washingtonians 16 and older had received their first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine. The plan included a fail-safe — the state would reopen June 30 regardless of vaccination rate — but the clear hope had been that Washington would reach that 70 percent threshold before the deadline.

At the time, roughly 57 percent of Washingtonians were at least partially vaccinated.

Now, nearly two months after Inslee's initial announcement and almost halfway through June, Washington still has not hit 70 percent, though it is finally drawing close. As of the latest available DOH data, 69.6 percent of eligible Washington residents have taken at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

To clear 70 percent, roughly 26,000 more Washingtonians will need to start taking doses.

Of course, failing a self-imposed goal is not the end of the world, and Washington's health leaders seem focused on the positives. Though it's been slowing over recent weeks, the vaccine rollout continues: Health care providers across Washington administered an average of 12,661 vaccines per day for the week ending Monday.

And, as the DOH also points out, by CDC calculations the state has more than exceeded 70 percent vaccination — though the CDC only considers patients 18 and older.

The DOH is also celebrating the success of the "Shot of a Lifetime" vaccine lottery, which they claim did boost vaccinations roughly 24 percent between June 3 and June 22. The agency estimates around 28,500 additional Washingtonians began vaccination because of the incentive.

Speaking of Shot of a Lifetime, the final drawing — which includes a $1 million Grand Prize, among hundreds of other prizes and giveaways — will take place next Tuesday. Anyone who has taken at least one dose of the vaccine is eligible to win, and state health leaders are hoping that million dollar prize will be enough to get those final 26,000 stragglers to the doctor's office for a shot.