Special Update; Alameda County Health Care Services Agency

Published on March 17, 2022

View our Thank You Video Message to Partners and Community

Two years ago today, multiple agencies across Alameda County gathered to open the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) as the first shelter-in-place Health Order in the nation went into effect. This action followed the Alameda County Board of Supervisors state of emergency declaration in response to COVID-19 the day prior. Together with colleagues from across the County, and in partnership with our cities and community-based organizations, we gathered to plan and launch many critical services for the community. In the midst of a rapidly evolving situation, we brought new services online that would have previously taken months to launch including:

• Opening the first two Project Roomkey hotels in California and welcoming guests less than two weeks after the Governor announced the new program.
• Conducting surge planning with community clinics, hospitals, long-term care facilities, and the medical society to maintain hospital capacity.
• Opening testing sites with trusted provider partners to serve communities of color closer to home.
• Creating the Long-Term Care Facility (LTCF) Task Force, responding to outbreaks, and conducting training to stop and prevent the spread of disease.
• Expanding case investigation and contact tracing in partnership with community-based organizations to provide health education and outreach in priority zip codes.
• Supporting local businesses through COVID guidelines and keeping their staff and customers safe throughout the pandemic. 
• Expanding access to telemedicine to continue mental health counseling and support.

A little over a year ago, in December 2020, we launched the first vaccine point-of-dispensing (POD) for health care workers and first responders less than a week after receiving the first doses in Alameda County. Working together we:

• Managed and allocated supplies to community providers, opened community-based PODs with emergency providers, and partnered with community-based organizations and local faith-based organizations to bring vaccines to priority zip codes.
• Welcomed the first mega POD at the Oakland Coliseum in partnership with the State, and launched the second mega POD at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in partnership with hospital and health care systems serving the Tri-Valley area.

Over the last two years, we deployed hundreds of staff, developed deeper relationships with County departments, and strengthened partnerships with medical providers, local government, schools, faith-based and community-based organizations. By working together, more than 83% of Alameda County residents are now fully vaccinated. 

As we reflect on this landmark work, we are mindful of the toll COVID-19 has taken on the community. We mourn the loss of more than 1,800 lives, and we remain focused on the disproportionate burden of disease. Communities of color and areas of the county that have historically had poor health outcomes due to decades of social and economic disadvantage experienced higher rates of COVID cases and death. The pandemic amplified health disparities that existed prior to COVID-19. Our planning remains focused on communities where disparities occurred and reflected in locations and trusted community partners for testing, outreach and education, and vaccination. We have continued work to do to reduce disparities in positivity rates, vaccination attainment rates, and testing rates that persist.

The pandemic altered the course of our lives and, as we look to the future, we must accept that COVID is here to stay. We’ve learned that prevention works – vaccines and boosters, masks, hand washing, and staying home when ill – and decisions that reduce the risk of COVID-19 to ourselves, our loved ones, our friends, and colleagues will keep us healthy. We must also manage mental health and wellbeing. Public health measures like shelter-in-place to stop the virus also contributed to feelings of isolation, loneliness, economic uncertainty, and anxiety.

We've accomplished incredible work together over the last two years, and it would not have been possible without our essential community partners and staff. Together we are better, and the Health Care Services Agency is grateful for your support. For more information, read today's press release.