I’m not inclined to send letters to the editor but I have a concern.

I’m 80 and my wife is 79. We both have underlying issues. We would like to get vaccinated. Mark Tompkins indicated that there are 5000 people over the age of 65 in our county and the state is issuing 200 doses per week. Doing the math, it will take 1/2 year just to get Tier 1b completed. But the state is already expanding the groups of people eligible for vaccination.

We understand the county and Peace Island Medical Center are doing their best given the limited supply. We do not have a smartphone and are not computer/internet savvy. According to the Seattle Times, people over 60 yrs old account for 90% of COVID 19 deaths. Some of our friends have gone off-island to get vaccinated even though CDC says don’t travel. Some have had their kids or grandkids set up appointments.

Since we’re in the era of conspiracy theories, I have one of my own to share. It appears to me, those of us living on the islands have acted responsibly, following CDC guidelines, and the result is the lowest infection rate in the state and no deaths. So the prize we get for acting responsibly is to be put at the “end of the line” so to speak, assuming that the risk here is low. Just sayin’.

Ken OBrien

Friday Harbor