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Due to an expected shortage of COVID-19 tests being provided to school districts across Washington state, Bellingham Public Schools announced it will be forced to make changes to the way it prioritizes utilizing the tests that it has.

“Unfortunately, the state Department of Health has notified us that there are insufficient COVID-19 tests for schools across the state, and this shortage is expected to impact all schools over the next 2-3 weeks,” an email sent by Bellingham Public Schools Tuesday, Jan. 25, to families stated. “We are disappointed with this news, which comes at a challenging time with the Omicron surge and new government programs for free at-home tests.” As a result of the shortage, the email said the school district’s tests will be prioritized to test unvaccinated close contacts participating in the district’s Test to Stay program, staff and students experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and students participating in extracurricular activities, such as athletics and performing arts.

St. Joseph hospital in Bellingham reported Wednesday, Jan. 26, that it was treating 59 patients with COVID-related symptoms. That is down five from the hospital’s last report and the first time it reported fewer than 60 COVID-related patients since it had 55 on Jan. 14.

Monday’s latest report on the state dashboard showed Whatcom County has 30,202 total COVID-19 cases during the pandemic. Of those, 29% (8,817 cases) have been epidemiologically linked to January.