Jefferson County’s mandate for people to show proof of vaccination for COVID-19 before entering a bar or restaurant likely prevented a major outbreak recently, Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry said Monday.

Berry, the health officer for Jefferson and Clallam counties, instigated the extra precaution after COVID-19 cases started to spike on the Olympic Peninsula and beyond due to the Delta variant of the coronavirus.

During her weekly pandemic briefing to county commissioners Monday, Berry noted a recent case where a restaurant worker who had COVID had been on the job for three days during their contagious period.

It happened about two weeks ago, and the person had also been a server at an indoors wedding that had 120 people in attendance.

“Not a single person got COVID-19 from that worker,” Berry said, “including that entire wedding party who that person served for three hours.”

Without the mandate in place, the infection could have spread into a large outbreak.

Berry said there could have been 60 cases from that individual alone, as well as the potential for hospitalizations and perhaps death.

The added precautions, Berry said, are preventing significant transmission of COVID-19 in local restaurants.

In other good news, Berry noted the potential approval of a COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11.

“We’re very excited about that,” she said.

Jabs could start next week, pending the federal go-ahead and then distribution of the vaccine.

She estimated that up to 50 percent of that age bracket would likely get vaccinated in Jefferson County, and that effort could be wrapped up in a few weeks.

“We should be well-situated to take care of our kids,” Berry said.

The number of COVID-19 infections in Jefferson County hit 1,164 cases Monday, but Berry noted that just one resident was still hospitalized for the coronavirus Nov. 1.

Nationwide, the number of COVID cases were flattening but at a very high level, she said.

Cases in Washington state were also at a plateau, and the numbers in Jefferson County have also flattened out.

Berry also noted: “74 percent of our cases are among the unvaccinated.”

As of Monday, Jefferson County's cumulative total of residents who have been hospitalized due to COVID-19 stood at 70.  A total of 31 residents were in active isolation due to the disease, which has claimed the lives of 17 people in Jefferson County since the start of the pandemic.