Monday night, Governor Jay Inslee issued a ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ order for the entire state of Washington to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
Effective immediately, all Washingtonians must stay home unless they are pursuing an essential activity.
Those include:
➡️ Grocery shopping
➡️ Doctor appointments
➡️ Essential work duty— Governor Jay Inslee (@GovInslee) March 24, 2020
According to Gov. Inslee, only essential businesses will be open including grocery stores and doctor’s offices.
According to the state of Washington, essential workforce includes:
- Workers providing COVID-19 testing and workers that perform critical clinical research and development needed for COVID-19 response.
- Health care providers and caregivers (e.g., physicians, dentists, psychologists, mid-level practitioners, nurses and assistants, infection control and quality assurance personnel, pharmacists, physical and occupational therapists and assistants, midwives and doulas attending facility-based or home-based births, alternative healthcare providers, social workers, speech pathologists and diagnostic and therapeutic technicians and technologists).
- Hospital and laboratory personnel (including accounting, administrative, admitting and discharge, engineering, epidemiological, source plasma and blood donation, food service, housekeeping, medical records, information technology and operational technology, nutritionists, sanitarians, respiratory therapists, etc.).
- Workers in other medical facilities (including Ambulatory Health and Surgical, Blood Banks, Clinics, Community Mental Health, Comprehensive Outpatient rehabilitation, End Stage Renal Disease, Health Departments, Home Health care, Hospices, Hospitals, Long Term Care, Organ Pharmacies, Procurement Organizations, Psychiatric, Residential, Rural Health Clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers, biotechnology therapies, consumer health products, cannabis retailers).
- Manufacturers, technicians, logistics and warehouse operators, and distributors of medical equipment, medical devices, diagnostics, personal protective equipment (PPE), medical gases, pharmaceuticals, blood and blood products, vaccines, testing materials, laboratory supplies, cleaning, sanitizing, disinfecting or sterilization supplies, and tissue and paper towel products. 1 March 23 , 2020
- Public health / community health workers, including those who compile, model, analyze and communicate public health information.
- Behavioral health workers (including mental and substance use disorder) responsible for coordination, outreach, engagement, and treatment to individuals in need of mental health and/or substance use disorder services.
- Blood and plasma donors and the employees of the organizations that operate and manage related activities.
- Workers that manage health plans, billing, and health information, who cannot practically work remotely.
- Workers who conduct community-based public health functions, conducting epidemiological surveillance, compiling, analyzing and communicating public health information, who cannot practically work remotely.
- Workers who provide support to vulnerable populations to ensure their health and well-being including family care providers
- Workers performing cybersecurity functions at healthcare and public health facilities, who cannot practically work remotely.
- Workers conducting research critical to COVID-19 response.
- Workers performing security, incident management, and emergency operations functions at or on behalf of healthcare entities including healthcare coalitions, who cannot practically work remotely.
- Workers who support food, shelter, and social services, and other necessities of life for economically disadvantaged or otherwise needy individuals, such as those residing in shelters.
- Pharmacy employees necessary for filling prescriptions.
- Workers performing mortuary services, including funeral homes, crematoriums, and cemetery workers.
- Workers who coordinate with other organizations to ensure the proper recovery, handling, identification, transportation, tracking, storage, and disposal of human remains and personal effects; certify cause of death; and facilitate access to behavioral health services to the family members, responders, and survivors of an incident.
- Workers supporting veterinary hospitals and clinics Essential Workforce
Gov. Inslee said that this will not prohibit people from being able to go outside and will not prohibit restaurants from serving take-out.
The ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ will last for at least two weeks.
