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3 COVID-19-related deaths, 230 new cases, 356 recoveries

 Jan. 17, 2021. Reno/Sparks, NV – The Regional Information Center is reporting three COVID-19-related deaths in Washoe County: Two males in their 70s and a female in her 60s; all had an underlying health condition. There have been 567 COVID-19-related deaths in Washoe County.

 Additionally, we’re reporting 230 new COVID-19 cases and 356 recoveries.  

 The Washoe County Health District is planning to administer approximately 1,800 COVID-19 vaccines to seniors this coming week. Those 70 years and older who signed up for the waiting list were eligible.

 Learn more about the vaccine on our new COVID-19 vaccine website, www.COVID19WashoeVaccine.com. To receive weekly COVID-19 vaccine emails, sign up here.

  • Total COVID-19 cases in Washoe County: 39,608 (+230 from 1/16)
  • Deaths: 567 (+3)
  • Recovered: 23,515 (+356)
  • Active cases: 15,526 (-129)
  • Hospitalized with COVID-19*: 173 (+0)
  • Vaccines administered by Washoe County Health District**: 9,878 (+0)
  • Total Vaccines Received in Washoe County: 22,760 (+0)
  • Vaccines distributed to community partners (Hospitals, medical providers): 11,030 (+0)

*Data from Nevada Hospital Association (not updated on weekends or holidays) includes residents from outside of Washoe County.

**This number is approximate and includes only COVID-19 vaccines administered by the Health District, which occur four days per week.

COVID-19 tests performed in Washoe County

  • Total number of COVID-19 tests performed in Washoe County as of January 16: 326,913 (+1,584 since 1/16)

Note: These figures are provided by the State of Nevada and can be found on the State Dashboard. COVID-19 tests may include non-Washoe County residents who were tested in Washoe County.

Hospital bed and ventilator information

According to the Nevada Hospital Association, in Washoe County as of January 15 (Numbers not updated on weekends):

  • 78 percent staffed hospital beds are occupied (+0% since 1/14)
  • 68 percent of all licensed hospital beds are occupied (+0%)
  • 46 percent of all Intensive Care Unit beds are occupied (+1%)
  • 26 percent of all ventilators are in use (+1%)

NOTE: Numbers are for all hospital patients in Washoe County and not just COVID-19 patients.

COVID-19 vaccine scheduling link leaked on social media, leads to delays in vaccine distribution

On Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021, our COVID-19 vaccine team was made aware of COVID-19 vaccination appointments filling up for the week of Jan. 18 at an unexpectedly high rate. The team sent out a scheduling link that was specifically made for educators. After further investigation, it was learned that the scheduling link was shared on social media and through email.

The vaccine appointment slots intended for educators, who were prioritized as frontline/essential workforce by the State of Nevada, were scheduled by nearly 300 people who were not frontline/essential workers who took advantage of the leaked scheduling link.

To resolve this issue, the COVID-19 response team reached out to all individuals who signed up for the educator-only slots and requested that those who were not educators please cancel their appointments. The email notified those individuals that if they were to show up to the vaccination Point of Dispensing (POD) and were not frontline/essential workers, they would be turned away. Many successfully cancelled their appointments.

The issue, overall, caused a full-day delay in scheduling essential workers and various law enforcement agencies and created delays in other essential duties by our team to help the public through this COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result of this breach, the team has implemented additional safeguards to prevent further improprieties. We thank everyone for their understanding.  

The COVID-19 Regional Information Center is working together to deliver COVID-19 community updates in a unified manner. While press releases are only sent periodically for significant events, you can always get daily results on our website, https://covid19washoe.com/, our COVID-19 Dashboard or by following us on Twitter @COVID19Washoe. The entities include: City of Reno, City of Sparks, North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, Regional Transportation Commission, REMSA, Reno Sparks Indian Colony, Reno Police Department, Reno Fire Department, Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District, University of Nevada, Reno, Washoe County, Washoe County Health District, Washoe County School District and Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. Also in the group are the area hospitals, Northern Nevada Medical Center, Renown Health and Saint Mary’s.