Coronavirus updates: Washington state passes 63k cases
Updated at 7:20 p.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Sunday reported 549 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and no additional deaths.
Pierce County reported 79 new cases and no additional deaths on Sunday. Pierce County now has 5,610 total cases and 126 deaths.
Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 63,072 cases and 1,688, up from 62,523 cases and 1,688 deaths Saturday.
DOH has been unable to report new negative test results since Aug. 1. Death counts from Saturday and Sunday remained the same due to classification changes that take place daily. Two previously reported deaths were removed on Sunday.
Forty-four people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on July 30, the most recent date with complete data. Late March had two days with 88 people admitted, the highest numbers to date during the pandemic.
King County continues to have the highest numbers in Washington, with 16,570 cases and 675 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 10,325 cases and 211 deaths.
All counties in Washington have cases. Garfield and Wahkiakum have case counts of fewer than 10.
There had been more than 5.0 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 162,919 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Saturday, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 729,000 people have died from the disease worldwide.
Pierce County reports 79 new cases
Updated at 2:50 p.m.
Pierce County on Sunday reported 79 new COVID-19 cases and no additional deaths.
County totals are now 5,610 cases and 126 deaths since the first case in the coronavirus pandemic was recorded March 6.
The Tacoma Pierce-County Health Department has reported 1,222 cases in the past 14 days. The 14-day case rate per 100,000 people is 135.5. The average cases per day over the last 14 days is 87.3.
There are 2,391 active cases in the county, according to the health department.
Daily totals for cases and deaths can change as the county receives new information, finds duplicate data or is assigned cases originally attributed to other counties.
Testing is available at various sites in the county. For more information on other local testing sites, go to www.tpchd.org/covidtest.
Sunday’s geographical case totals are listed below with previous day’s totals in parentheses:
▪ Bonney Lake: 129 (127)
▪ Central Pierce County: 373 (367)
▪ East Pierce County: 158 (156)
▪ Edgewood/Fife/Milton: 216 (214)
▪ Frederickson: 209 (206)
▪ Gig Harbor area: 144 (143)
▪ Graham: 192 (189)
▪ JBLM: No longer reported
▪ Key Peninsula: 34 (33)
▪ Lake Tapps/Sumner area: 171 (172)
▪ Lakewood: 507 (502)
▪ Parkland: 315 (314)
▪ Puyallup: 341 (336)
▪ South Hill: 289 (286)
▪ South Pierce County: 124 (120)
▪ Southwest Pierce County: 57 (no change)
▪ Spanaway: 254 (257)
▪ Tacoma: 1,801 (1,771)
▪ University Place: 239 (234)
▪ Unknown: 57 (58)
Washington state reports 936 new cases
Updated at 9:50 a.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Saturday reported 936 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 16 deaths.
Pierce County reported 84 new cases and three new deaths Saturday. Pierce County had a total of 126 deaths likely caused by COVID-19 as of Saturday, according to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 62,523 cases and 1,688 deaths, up from 61,587 cases and 1,672 deaths Friday.
Forty-four people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on July 30, the most recent date with complete data. Late March had two days with 88 people admitted, the highest numbers to date during the pandemic.
Washington state has conducted 1,011,693 coronavirus tests. On July 30, 5,924 specimens were collected statewide, with 11.4% testing positive. The average positive test rate for the seven days prior was 6.3%.
The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which are given to patients while the virus is presumably still active in the body.
King County continues to have the highest numbers in Washington, with 16,439 cases and 674 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 10,269 cases and 212 deaths.
All counties in Washington have cases. Garfield and Wahkiakum have case counts of fewer than 10.
On Saturday, Washington had an 817 per 100,000 people case rate. The national rate is 1,501, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Louisiana has the highest rate in the U.S. at 2,763. Hawaii is lowest at 206.
There had been more than 4.9 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 162,381 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Saturday, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 723,000 people have died from the disease worldwide.
17 cases against Stay Home, Stay Healthy haven’t yet limited governor’s orders
Updated at 9:50 a.m.
There have been 17 legal challenges to the governor’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy orders, and none have resulted in a court limiting those orders, the state Attorney General said this week.
Seven of the cases are resolved, nine are pending, and one is on appeal, Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s Office said in a press release.
“State and federal courts across Washington have rejected the plaintiff’s requests for emergency relief in many of the cases, and the plaintiffs in several other cases have given up and abandoned their claims,” the AG’s Office said in the press release. “While more than 10 motions to temporarily block the orders have been filed in the various cases, not one has been granted.”
Some court rulings describe the plaintiff’s arguments as “frivolous,” “unpersuasive,” and “completely devoid of merit,” the press release said.
Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement: “The courts have affirmed the Governor’s authority to act during this ongoing emergency as COVID cases continue to rise throughout the state. I thank Attorney General Ferguson and his team for all their work on this. Our state could be more effective in fighting the virus if all Washingtonians were pulling together with everyone doing their part.”
A list from Ferguson’s office of the cases and their status showed lawsuits filed in state and federal court.
Trump order could mean $400 in state unemployment benefits - but Washington might have to help
Updated at 9:50 a.m.
Millions of unemployed Washington residents could see $400 a week more in their weekly unemployment payments — possibly by the end of the month — thanks to the executive order President Donald Trump signed Saturday.
Trump said the money should be available in a “very rapid” fashion.
The state’s Employment Security Department has previously said it could two weeks to implement a new flat benefit.
“The effort requires changing programming to the new amount, and then recalculating monetary benefits for every claimant to allocate those moneys to their account,” ESD Commissoner Suzi LeVine told the state’s congressional delegation recently in a memo.
The average Washington state benefit has been $525 a week, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which means workers’ weekly benefit could jump to $925 a week.
Nationally, the aggregate weekly benefit is $364. Washington is among the most generous states, along with Massachusetts at $518. States with averages well below the national aggregate include Florida, $252, Missouri, $269, and South Carolina, $277.
It’s likely that anyone now receiving regular state unemployment benefits or benefits under the new federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program would be eligible for the additional payment. PUA was created in March to provide aid to those who do not qualify for regular state programs, such as independent contractors or gig workers.
Trump’s order would partly revive a benefit the nation’s unemployed workers had received from late March until late July. He announced his plan at a news conference at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, saying that states would pay 25% of the cost of the new unemployment benefit. The federal government, which had paid for the entire $600 benefit, would pay the rest.
Trump said states would be asked to be “using existing funding, such as the tens of millions of dollars available to them through the coronavirus relief fund.”
Trump was asked which governors had said they would agree to this plan.
“If they don’t they don’t...That’s going to be their problem. I don’t think their people would be too happy. They have the money,” he said.
This story was originally published August 9, 2020 at 9:59 AM.
