SEATTLE — One year ago, life changed for millions of Washingtonians, as Gov. Jay Inslee announced the statewide coronavirus "Stay Home, Stay Healthy" order on March 23, 2020.
The order, which restricted non-essential businesses, had immediate impacts throughout Puget Sound as restaurants and bars closed their doors to indoor service, events and travel were canceled, and work from home became the new reality for many. And workers in essential businesses - healthcare, grocery employees, and those preserving food and energy infrastructure - kept going to work.
The announcement is surreal to watch now, from a time where relatively little was known about how the virus spread, and masks were discouraged among the general public to preserve supplies for healthcare workers.
But with the mass closures, Mitzi Lawson, a massage therapist in Port Orchard, was immediately out of work. But she had no way to anticipate how bad the year would get, as she struggled to receive unemployment through the spring.
“There’s no way you can anticipate this because none of us in our lifetimes have gone through anything like this,” she said.
Like so many, she struggled over the past year at times as the restrictions forced closures and reductions to many peoples’ livelihood, especially those that rely on in-person services. Statewide unemployment soared past numbers seen during the Great Recession.
But the data has shown the social distancing measures and masks work – Washington has one of the lower case rates in the country right now, 72 per 100,000 people in the last 7 days, below the national average of 116.
Still, many disagreed with the closure orders. In May 2020, a group of Republican lawmakers sued to try and reopen the state. Several protests called on the governor to lift restrictions. And as recently as this month, GOP lawmakers called for more restrictions to be reduced.
To date, more than 540,000 people have died of COVID-19 in the United States.
But after a dark year, things are looking up. With Washington moving into Phase 3 of reopening this week, Lawson is seeing a few more clients, though she still depends on aid from the state and federal recovery packages.
“Thank God for that,” Lawson said. “If it hadn’t been for that unemployment check, I would not be surviving. I would have lost everything.”
Vaccine rollout continues, as well. To date, officials estimate 14% of the nation has been fully vaccinated, and 2.8 million doses have been distributed in Washington.
It gives Lawson hope that things will continue to improve, and a year from now, her situation will look much better. It’s why she hopes people continue to wear their masks, and help keep case counts under control. On her horizon is Phase 4, which would allow her to work more.
“We have to make sure people are comfortable, they have to be able to feel confident in us that they are going to be protected,” she said.