FORT HALL — The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes Emergency Operations Center advises the Fort Hall Indian Health Center, Shoshone-Bannock Community Health Center and the Tribal Health and Human Services are pausing administering the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine after the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advised of rare blood clotting reported in six people who received it in the U.S.

The CDC and FDA are investigating unusual clots that occurred 6 to 13 days after the vaccination. All six cases occurred among women between the ages of 18 and 48 according to Southeastern Idaho Public Health. As of April 12, more than 6.8 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been administered. (cont.)

By DANA HERNANDEZ
Sho-Ban News
FORT HALL — The Language and Culture Preservation Department hosted another Zoom session for the Virtual Youth and Elder Gatherings and Drive-Thru Dinners on Friday, April 9.

The session was part of many that encourages the youth and elders to take part of the Tribal Practices for Wellness in Indian Country grant by listening to speakers who share their traditional knowledge and tribal practices regarding wellness. This session featured tribal elder Charlene Wahtomy who spoke about her knowledge of harvesting and preserving the plants used for food and medicine. (cont.)

BOISE — The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced they will begin providing financial assistance for funeral expenses incurred after January 20, 2020 for deaths related to coronavirus (COVID-19) to help ease some of the financial stress and burden caused by the pandemic.

The policy was finalized March 24 and FEMA is moving forward to implement funeral assistance program nationwide. These services will soon be available to Idaho citizens. (cont.)

FORT HALL — COVID-19 cases are fluctuating on the Fort Hall Reservation according to the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes Emergency Operations Center and they are aware of the variants in the regions so they are urging community members to wear face masks and continue social distancing.

If you’ve received a vaccine, you are still required to wear a face mask in public said EOC Public Information Officer Randy’L Teton in an EOC press release.

She said Fort Hall COVID-19 numbers for this week as of April 12 at 4 p.m. are: Total active cases: 14; total cases to date: 910; total currently hospitalized: 0; total deceased to date: 878; total vaccines given to date: 4,796. (cont.)