CDC says the state has achieved its 70% goal, but state’s statistics say we’re still falling short.

From the Office of the Governor

Gov. Jay Inslee released a statement today on numbers used to determine when Washington state will fully reopen.

“Many people, myself included, are eager for our state to fully reopen. I have said repeatedly we are going to do this on June 30 or when we hit 70% of people 16 and up initiating vaccinations – whichever happens first. We use age 16 and up as that population was eligible when we made the announcement.

“I am hopeful Washingtonians will get vaccinated for their own health and that of their loved ones, and to help move our state closer to a full reopening.

“For those who would advocate changing our strategy, we are on the two-yard line. We are not going to change the game plan now. We are going to see this through.

“I said this last week, but it bears repeating: We need to compare apples to apples. Many on social media have chosen to compare data that don’t belong together, giving Washingtonians incomplete or misinformed data on our progress.

“Our state uses data for people age 16 and up; the federal government uses data for ages 18 and up. We use the most recent Census data from 2020; the federal government uses older data.

“Additionally, the Department of Defense and Veterans Administration federal vaccination programs do not share person-level data with the Department of Health, and the state can only rely on data it has access to and can verify.

“Washington state has been calculating data the same way throughout this process. This provides the most complete, accurate and transparent data on vaccination rates.

“I encourage all Washingtonians to get vaccinated. Not only is it the right thing to do, but the Shot of a Lifetime vaccine lottery is ongoing and those who initiate vaccination are automatically entered.”

Detail on Washington State Department of Health and CDC data:

State calculation on WA progress to 70% vaccination (as of June 15):

• Rate 16+:  67.2%
• Numerator: 4,129,165 (3,975,976 IIS and 153,189 DoD and VA)
• Denominator: 6,144,281 (16+ 2020 OFM estimates)

How the CDC is calculating statewide progress:

• Rate 18+: 71.7%
• Numerator: 4,267,169
• Denominator: 5,951,832 (2019 census estimate)