Travelers Returning to Juneau Recommended to Get Tested for COVID-19

Due to the rise in COVID-19 cases across the country and locally, CBJ recommends that travelers get tested for COVID-19 upon their return to Juneau.  Free testing is available at the Juneau International Airport and at the Fire Training Center.  The majority of SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1-2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2-3 days after.  Testing helps to identify when an individual is COVID-19 positive and contagious even if the individual is asymptomatic or before symptoms appear.

For more information, email [email protected] or call 907-586-6000.

 

December 28th, 2021|

People of CBJ: Robin Marks

“My family has always worked in labs. There are many lab professionals in the family. My grandfather was a biochemist in organic steroid chemistry. My mother was a chemist and worked in laboratory information services. Growing up, my mom brought home rescue lab rabbits. This was during a time when you needed to make your own lab reagents with rabbit plasma for immunochemistry fertility testing. Their names were Estradiol and Testosterone. I have stitches in my finger from when my rabbits mistook me for a carrot.”

Lead Clinical Laboratory Scientist Robin Marks is in charge of Bartlett Regional Hospital’s COVID-19 molecular testing lab. If you get tested at CBJ’s drive-thru testing facility or the Juneau School District, your test gets analyzed there. Since February, when Bartlett was the first hospital in the state to be equipped with a Roche Cobas 6800 Analyzer, the lab has run at least 30,000 COVID-19 tests.

Robin acknowledges the pivotal role COVID-19 testing plays in helping to keep schools and businesses open. Her main motivation for taking on the top job in the BRH molecular lab was her eight-year old daughter. While homeschooling last year, “She said, ‘I’m tired of being at home, so we need a scientist to fix this!’”

December 17th, 2021|

Juneau’s community risk level lowers to Moderate

Due to sustained improvements in hospital and public health capacity, other risk indicators being at the low or moderate level, and Juneau’s high vaccination rate, the City and Borough of Juneau Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is reducing the overall community risk to Level 2 Moderate. At Moderate, the mask requirement changes, but all other COVID-19 Community Mitigation Strategies remain the same as modified Level 3 High. Juneau has been at the modified Level 3 since November 15.

This community mitigation measure on masking is effective immediately:

  • Masks are required in indoor, public locations for not fully vaccinated individuals and are highly recommended for fully vaccinated individuals. Individual businesses/facilities may continue to require masking regardless of vaccination status. Please note: CBJ facilities will continue to require masking regardless of vaccination status. And per federal rule, masking remains required in airports, on planes, and buses for everyone 2 years and older regardless of vaccination status. Masking continues to be an effective layer of protection at mitigating the spread of COVID-19.

All other mitigation measures remain the same:

  • Indoor gathering limit is 50 with masks required. There is no size limit or masking if all individuals at the gathering are fully vaccinated, though masking is recommended. Previously submitted exemption requests remain approved. New exemption requests can be submitted through [email protected].
  • ​Restaurants are recommended to ensure distancing between parties. If not fully vaccinated, patrons must wear masks when not actively eating or drinking.
  • Bars cannot exceed 50 percent capacity. If not fully vaccinated, patrons must wear masks when not actively eating or drinking
  • Personal services are by appointment only; waiting areas at 50 percent capacity.
  • Gyms are still limited to 50 percent capacity. Indoor classes are limited to fully vaccinated individuals only.

Read CBJ’s COVID-19 Risk Metrics and Mitigation Strategies here for more details.

The EOC believes the main risk of increased COVID-19 transmission in the short term will be related to travel and indoor family gatherings. If you are traveling, please utilize free COVID-19 testing provided by Capstone Clinic at the Juneau International Airport. If you are welcoming travelers from out of town for the holidays, please encourage them to also utilize free COVID-19 testing provided at the Juneau International Airport as well as self-tests before they’re introduced to your family bubble.

In accordance with CDC guidance, EOC urges residents ages 16 and up to get a booster. Go to juneau.org/vaccine to find availability. Data supports the efficacy of boosters against Delta and preliminary data supports the efficacy of boosters against Omicron.

For more information, contact CBJ Emergency Operations Center Incident Commander and Deputy City Manager Robert Barr at 907-586-5240 or [email protected], or email [email protected].

December 13th, 2021|

Ages 16 and 17 can now get COVID-19 booster

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has expanded its recommendation on COVID-19 vaccine booster doses to include individuals who are 16- and 17-years-old. Now, ages 16 and up can get a Pfizer booster shot 6 months after their initial Pfizer series.

“CDC is strengthening its booster recommendations and encouraging everyone 16 and older to receive a booster shot. Although we don’t have all the answers on the Omicron variant, initial data suggests that COVID-19 boosters help broaden and strengthen the protection against Omicron and other variants,” CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in a December 9 media statement.

As of December 13, the following Juneau providers are administering Pfizer boosters/vaccines to ages 16 and 17:

  • Juneau Public Health Center
    • Walk in, or by appointment at juneau.org/vaccine or call 907-586-6000
    • Availability every weekday (excluding holidays) thru Dec. 30, 8:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
    • 3412 Glacier Highway (across from the Twin Lakes parking lot)
  • Genoa Healthcare
    • Walk-in 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Monday thru Friday (closed for lunch 12 – 12:30 p.m.) or call 877-658-0304 for more information
    • 1944 Allen Ct. within JAMHI Juneau Health and Wellness, Inc.
  • Juneau Urgent & Family Care
    • Walk in 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday thru Friday, and 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday & Sunday
    • Or make an appointment here.
  • SEARHC’s Ethel Lund Medical Center
    • By appointment or during vaccine/booster clinics; call 907-463-4040 or sign up online:
      • Saturdays, Dec. 18, Jan. 8, Jan. 15, Jan. 22 & Jan. 29 at 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
      • Friday, Dec. 31 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
    • 1200 Salmon Creek Lane

You can also call CBJ’s COVID-19 Hotline 907-586-6000 to schedule a vaccine or booster appointment.

For more information, email [email protected] or call 907-586-6000.

December 13th, 2021|

State reports 25 new COVID-19 cases for Juneau for Dec. 9 & 10

The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) reports 25 new residents in the Juneau community identified with COVID-19 for December 9 and December 10. According to Juneau Public Health, there are about 80 active cases. Of those: about half the cases are known exposures, mostly from household members or small gatherings; roughly a quarter appear to be community transmission; and Public Health doesn’t have enough information about the remaining cases to denote attribution.

There is currently one person with COVID-19 hospitalized at Bartlett Regional Hospital. The Juneau School District reports one new individual from Riverbend Elementary School who tested positive for COVID-19 and was infectious while in school.

Please note: This is the last COVID-19 case count update the City and Borough of Juneau will issue for the time being. Due to the wide availability and use of antigen self-tests, there is less data integrity; neither positive or negative test results from self-tests are counted in DHSS numbers. Additionally, the same information found in these case count updates is available in:

Statewide, DHSS reports 453 new people identified with COVID-19 – 445 are residents and eight are nonresidents – in the past two days. Alaska has had 147,975 cumulative resident cases of COVID-19 and a total of 5,450 nonresidents.

For more information, contact CBJ’s Emergency Operations Center at [email protected].

December 10th, 2021|
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