Washington state reports 404 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday and 24 deaths
Note: An earlier version of this story inadvertently added Monday’s new cases totals to Tuesday’s. The new case totals are now correct.
The Washington state Department of Health reported 404 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 Tuesday and 24 deaths from the last four days.
The department does not report deaths over the weekends any longer and a data problem prevented it from reporting deaths Monday.
Pierce County reported 52 cases Tuesday and three new deaths. Pierce County has a total of 173 deaths likely caused by COVID-19 as of Tuesday, according to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 87,042 cases and 2,124 deaths, up from 86,638 cases and 2,100 deaths Monday. Washington’s population is estimated at about 7.6 million, according to U.S. Census figures from July 2019.
Twenty-five people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Sept. 10, the most recent date with complete data. Late March had two days with 88 people admitted, the highest numbers to date during the pandemic.
On Sept. 18, the most recent date with complete data, 12,628 specimens were collected statewide, with 4.1% testing positive. The average positive test rate for the seven days prior was 3.2%. More than 1.8 million tests have been conducted in Washington.
The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction tests, which are administered while the virus is presumably still active in the body.
King County continues to have the highest numbers in Washington, with 22,237 cases and 761 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 11,413 cases and 260 deaths. Pierce is third with cases at 8,002.
All counties in Washington have cases. Ten counties have case counts of fewer than 100.
On Tuesday, Washington had a 1,150-per-100,000-people case rate. The national rate is 2,154, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Louisiana has the highest rate in the United States at 3,569. Vermont is lowest at 279.
There had been more than 7.1 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 205,895 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Tuesday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The United States has the highest number of reported cases and deaths of any nation. More than 1 million people have died from the disease worldwide. Global cases exceed 33 million.
This story was originally published September 29, 2020 at 5:13 PM.
