FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 27, 2020
Contact: Reba Lean, Public Relations Manager
Phone: 907-443-9674
Nome, Alaska – One patient tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, December 26. The patient is a Nome resident and is a close contact to a previously identified case.
Norton Sound Health Corporation has contacted the patient and they are safely isolating. The State of Alaska Section of Epidemiology and Public Health Nursing have been notified.
The region’s active case count now totals seven, with all cases in Nome. There are no active COVID-19 cases in the region’s villages.
NSHC is ahead of schedule and has opened COVID-19 vaccinations to Group 1 essential workers, including the following:
- Daycare and K-12 teachers and support staff
- Grocery store workers
- Cab/Taxi drivers
- Airline customer facing workers including Pilots, TSA, Gate/Desk Agents
- U.S. Postal Service workers
- Corrections workers, including adult and juvenile corrections and Seaside staff
- Staff of homeless shelters, domestic violence shelters and similar congregate living facilities
- Office of Child Services and Adult Services Staff
- Fisheries/Seafood industry workers
Vaccinations have been open to frontline healthcare workers, first responders, residents of NSHC’s long-term care center and to ages 65 and older. To make an appointment to receive a vaccination in Nome, please visit www.picktime.com/NSHC and choose your appropriate category. Please note that appointments are located at the Nome Pharmacy, not to be confused with the COVID-19 testing site.
NSHC plans to keep updating its vaccination schedule based on its supply and appointment availability in Nome.
In the villages, NSHC has planned to vaccinate about 10 percent of each community’s population in this first round of vaccinations. More village trips will be immediately scheduled when the next round of vaccines arrives. Vaccinations are available on a priority basis, starting with frontline healthcare workers, first responders, elders, and critical infrastructure workers.
