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1. Can I take the class and test online?

Yes. In addition to classes being available at the Snohomish Health District Everett location, the food worker card class and test can both be taken online.

2. Do I have to register ahead of time to take the class?

Pre-registration is not required.

3. When are the classes offered at Snohomish Health District?

Classes are scheduled:

• 2:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month in English
• 10 a.m. on the third Tuesday of each month in English
• 10 a.m. el primer martes de cada mes en Espanol
  
  
  

4. Can I schedule a special class for a group or event that needs food worker cards?

Health District staff can provide group training off-site if desired. For a class to be offered at your location, you must have a minimum of 20 people. We generally schedule classes one to two months in advance. Contact our office to request a class: 425-339-5250 or email Food Safety.

5. How much is the food worker card?

The fee for a food worker card is $10. We accept cash, credit or debit (Visa and MasterCard) for instructor-led classes at the Everett location. Only credit and debit (Visa and MasterCard) are accepted for online classes. 

Note: The charges for the food worker cards obtained online will be listed under Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department on your bank statement.

6. How long is the food work class?

The in-person class lasts approximately 90 minutes, including the instruction and test. Please arrive early to find parking and get signed in. There is no admittance after the class begins. Allow about 60 minutes for the online food worker class.

7. Is there an age requirement for the class?

There are no age requirements for obtaining a food worker card. The only requirement is taking the class and passing the test.

8. Do I have to retake the class and test to renew my food worker card?

Yes. To receive a 3-year card, you may renew your old card up to 60 days prior to the expiration date. Expired cards are not eligible to renew for a 3 year card.

9. How can I get a replacement card if I lost mine?

You can get a replacement card (with the original test date) at the Snohomish Health District Environmental Health Division office in Everett. If you originally received your card online, you can print a duplicate. The fee for a replacement card is $10. We accept cash, credit and debit (Visa and MasterCard) at the Everett location and credit and debit only online.

10. Can I read the test to a child or student with special needs?

Yes. We are happy to meet the needs of each person who needs a food worker card.

11. I am hearing impaired. What are my options for getting a food worker card?

• We provide study booklets
• You are allowed to bring an interpreter or friend to help guide you through the test
• You can email or call us ahead of time to request an American Sign Language interpreter to come to a class of your choosing
• You can take the test and class online

12. Am I required to have a food worker card?

Cashiers, bussers, stockers, and dishwashers are all required to have a food worker card as a safety precaution. Many states are adopting “limited use” permits for these types of workers, but Washington State has yet to adopt these permits.

13. What options do I have if I speak a foreign language?

• You can bring someone to help translate the information and test
• We provide booklets and tests in 9 foreign languages that cover all the information needed to pass the test:  
  • Cambodian
  • Chinese
  • Korean
  • Punjabi
  • Russian
  • Spanish
  • Tagalog
  • Thai
  • Vietnamese
• You can take the class and test in various languages online

14. How long is my food worker card valid?

Food worker cards are valid throughout Washington State for 2 years.

15. How do I renew my food worker card?

You can renew your card for 3 years if you re-take the class before your current card expires - bring your old card with you when you take the class in person. If you renew online, bring your old card and the card you received online into Snohomish Health Department and we will issue you a three-year card.

If your old card has expired, you will only be able to receive a two-year card. You may be eligible for a five-year card if you have completed an approved advanced training such as a Food Managers Course.

16. When are you too sick to work with food?

Even if you have a food worker card, you are not permitted to work with food if you have:

• Continual sneezing, coughing, or runny nose
• Diagnosed infections that can be spread through food, such as salmonella, shigella, E coli, or hepatitis A
• Diarrhea, vomiting, or jaundice
• Infected, uncovered wounds

Sick food workers should go home or be given duties that do not involve handling food, such as taking out the trash, cleaning restrooms, or busing tables.

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1. What is the Healthy Youth Survey?

The Washington State Healthy Youth Survey is an optional, anonymous survey given every other year to students in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12. It gathers information on topics such as physical activity and nutrition, alcohol and drug use, physical and sexual abuse, school safety, and depression and suicide. The 2018 survey was the sixteenth such statewide survey.

2. Are all students asked the same questions?

There are three versions of the survey. Two of them are for 8th grade and older. The core questions all are the same, and students in the same classroom may receive different forms. The goal is to make sure the greatest number of questions can be answered in the limited time available (one class period). 

The third form of the survey is for 6th graders. It is shorter and less detailed.

Optional questions about sexual orientation, behavior and abuse are formatted so that they may be removed by schools that choose not to administer them without affecting the rest of the survey.

3. Can you trust the results?

The survey is optional and anonymous, so students can answer honestly without fear of getting themselves or someone else in trouble.

Some parents worry that students are not honest with their answers, or that they don’t take the survey seriously. While there may be some dishonest answers, the sample size is large enough to trust that, overall, the data and trends are reliable. In 2016, more than 230,000 students from all across Washington took the survey, including more than 14,600 in Snohomish County.

There also are several questions and metrics in place in the surveys to help identify and remove any that are not truthful.

4. How is the information from the survey used?

The survey results provide insight for school and health officials as well as parents and policymakers. Identifying trends in health issues or risky behaviors can help determine at what age interventions may be most useful, or whether existing interventions are working. The information also can help target limited resources toward the most pressing physical and mental health problems among young people.

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1. Are people born before 1957 still considered immune to measles?

Yes, people born before 1957 are considered immune to measles, and providing documentation of a date of birth earlier than 1957 is sufficient proof of immunity for employees who are not medical providers. However, any medical provider - including school nurses - must have two MMR vaccines, regardless of birth date. A date of birth before 1957 will not be enough to avoid exclusion for medical providers if there is a measles exposure at their location.

2. Is one dose of MMR enough for students and staff to continue going to/working at school during the exclusion period after a measles exposure?

No. Based on recent changes in guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Washington State Department of Health, students and staff must have both doses of the MMR vaccine.

3. If someone has received only one MMR vaccine, but they have serology/bloodwork showing immunity, do they still need the second dose?

If someone provides paperwork signed by a licensed healthcare provider that says their serology/bloodwork shows immunity, a second immunization is not needed.

4. Would a recent immunization throw off a titer (bloodwork to show immunity)?

The MMR takes up to two weeks to be effective, so if someone received the MMR vaccine and did a titer within two weeks, the titer may not show full immunity.

5. If I work at a site where there was a measles exposure, why can't I just go and get both doses of the MMR and return to work?

The MMR can take up to two weeks to be fully effective. In addition, if there is a reaction to the MMR vaccine, it can be harder to determine if symptoms are from the vaccine or from the measles virus.

6. If a school staff member who is not fully immunized visited or substituted at a school during a measles exposure, are they excluded from all school buildings for the exclusion period?

Yes. Unimmunized or under-immunized staff members or substitutes that visited a school during an exposure window must be excluded from any school until after the exclusion window. However, staff at other school buildings where the under-immunized worker spent time do not need to be excluded unless a case occurs at their school.

7. I was fully vaccinated between 1963 and 1968, but my blood test does not show immunity to measles. Do I need two doses?

One dose is sufficient. However, if there has been an exclusion at your workplace (a school or medical practice), you will be excluded for the duration. Keep documentation of all vaccinations and bloodwork to show immunity in the future.

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1. What is mumps?

Mumps is a highly contagious viral illness. An infected person can spread it through face-to-face contact by coughing, sneezing, or spraying saliva while talking. Mumps can also spread when people share cups and eating utensils. Mumps is a condition that health providers must report to the local health department when a probable or diagnosed case occurs.

2. What are the symptoms?

Mumps causes puffy cheeks and a swollen jaw, the result of swollen salivary glands. Other symptoms are:

• Fever
• Headache
• Loss of appetite
• Muscle aches
• Tiredness
• Up to 10% of teen boys and men can experience swelling of the testicles. Meningitis and encephalitis are rare but serious complications of mumps

3. How can you prevent mumps?

Immunization is the most effective way to prevent mumps. Everyone should make sure they are up to date on their MMR vaccine. Children must have two doses of the MMR vaccine to attend school. 

Other ways to protect yourself:

• Avoid contact with anyone infected with mumps
• Don’t share cups and eating utensils
• Wash your hands with soap and water

4. Who is more likely to get mumps?

• Adults born in or after 1957 who have not been vaccinated or have not had mumps before
• Babies less than one year old
• Children older than one who have not received at least one dose of the MMR
  
  

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1. What do I need to make my first appointment?

• Chest X-ray taken during Visa medical examination
• I-94 card 
• Immunization records 
• Medical coverage information, if available
• Overseas Visa medical examination information 
• Passport

2. What can I expect at my first appointment?

• Blood test for communicable diseases and anemia
• Health screening interview 
• TB test
• Vital signs, check hearing and vision

3. What can I expect at my second appointment?

• Answers to any questions 
• Referral for a chest X-ray, if needed 
• Referrals to community health care providers
• Review of lab and TB test results

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1. Who needs septic as-built information?

State law requires that homeowners inspect and maintain their septic system to ensure it is functioning properly. An as-built drawing shows the location of your drain field, which is also useful for:

• Property owners doing landscaping or building
• Real estate professionals preparing for a purchase or sale
• Septic professionals doing maintenance or repair

2. What information is in a record?

Information on each property record includes:

• Year built
• Legal description
• Ownership and septic system status
• Type and location of the drain field installed on the property, if there is one

3. Where does the septic information come from?

In general, the only information included is the as-built drawing, even though additional information on the property’s septic system may be on file at the Snohomish Health District offices.

The "Property Site Information" and "Property Owner Information" sections are from the Snohomish County Assessor’s Office and are updated on a routine basis. The "OnlineRME" and "Comments" sections are entered by the Snohomish Health District Water and Wastewater program. Attached scans are from the district’s files.

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