BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Whatcom County will not be moving into Phase 3 of the state’s re-opening plan this week..
Friday marks three weeks since we moved into Phase 2, the soonest we could move forward.
The Whatcom County Health Department says we do not meet Phase 3 eligibility requirements and they will not be applying.
The main challenge is the county case count, which is currently over the 14-day limit and includes nearly 50 newly confirmed cases over the past four days.
The health department says we are meeting Phase 3 requirements for healthcare system readiness as there are plenty of hospital beds available for COVID-19 patients.