Coronavirus updates: Report shows transmission increasing in western Washington
Updated at 9 a.m.
The Washington state Department of Health reported on Wednesday 734 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 10 deaths.
Pierce County reported 89 cases Wednesday and no new deaths. Pierce County has a total of 182 deaths likely caused by COVID-19 as of Wednesday, according to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 95,509 cases and 2,221 deaths, up from 94,775 cases and 2,211 deaths Tuesday. Washington’s population is estimated at about 7.6 million, according to U.S. Census figures from July 2019.
Twenty-seven people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Sept. 25, the most recent date with complete data. Average daily hospitalizations peaked in early April at 78.
On Oct. 3, the most recent date with complete data, 11,641 specimens were collected statewide, with 3.3% testing positive. The average positive test rate for the seven days prior was 3.5%. More than 2.1 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 24,466 cases and 790 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 11,628 cases and 266 deaths. Pierce is third with cases at 8,917, according to the state’s tally.
All counties in Washington have cases. Eight counties have case counts of fewer than 100.
For the past seven days, Washington had a 7.8-per-100,000-people case rate. The national rate for the same period is 15.5, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. North Dakota has the highest rate in the United States at 76.9. Vermont is lowest at 1.5.
There had been more than 7.9 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 216,553 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Wednesday 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 38 million.
COVID-19 transmission increasing in western Washington, rates flat but higher in eastern Washington
Updated at 9 a.m.
The Washington State Department of Health released the latest statewide situation report on COVID-19 transmission.
Report findings include:
▪ Transmission is increasing in western Washington and recently plateauing in eastern Washington. The best estimates of the reproductive number — how many new people each COVID-19 patient will infect — were 1.12 in western Washington and 0.94 in eastern Washington as of September 27. The goal is a number well below one, which would mean COVID-19 transmission is declining.
▪ The situation in eastern Washington is unstable and efforts to control the spread of the virus must be strictly maintained or intensified to avoid a backslide. This instability is clear in case and hospitalization numbers, where there have been increases and decreases at various points in September.
▪ Case counts in western Washington are increasing across all age groups and over broad geographic areas. This suggests increases are due to broad community spread, not driven by a single type of activity or setting.
▪ Recent growth in cases is widely distributed across a number of counties. Some larger counties (Clark, King, Kitsap, Pierce, Snohomish and Thurston) are seeing steady increases. Several smaller counties (Lewis, Mason, Pend Oreille and Skagit) are clearly experiencing increases, though the total number of recent cases remains low. Benton and Franklin counties are seeing gradual but steady increases as well.
Washington state schools report 37 employee COVID-19 cases
Updated at 9 a.m.
About 40 employees in three school districts in Washington state have tested positive for COVID-19 since the school year began in August.
The Kennewick School District was the only one to publicly report how many staff members have tested positive for COVID-19 and where they work, the Tri-City Herald reported. The other two districts, Pasco and Richland, released updated confirmed case figures on Tuesday.
District officials say Kennewick had reported 14 employees and one student tested positive for the virus, Pasco had 17 staff members test positive and Richland had six staff members test positive.
The Pasco and Richland districts are still teaching nearly all students remotely and have yet to decide when students should return to in-person classes.
Pasco Public Affairs Director Shane Edinger said district officials have cleaned the work areas and other parts of the school the sick employees visited. He also said the district is continuing to evaluate options for posting regular updates on employee cases.
Richland Communication Director Ty Beaver said the employees who tested positive were not working in the district’s buildings and had no contact with other staff or students. He added that the district is planning to create an online dashboard to list the number of sick staff members and where they were working.
In Kennewick, about 250 additional students started in-person classes this week, including preschoolers. Students in K-5 are expected to return next week on staggered schedules, officials said.
Fauci calls for some Americans to ‘bite that bullet’ and avoid Thanksgiving gatherings
Updated at 9 a.m.
Americans may need to avoid holding Thanksgiving gatherings to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday.
Speaking on “CBS Evening News,” the nation’s top infectious disease expert warned “you may have to bite that bullet and sacrifice that social gathering.”
“That is unfortunately a risk, when you have people coming from out of town, gathering together in an indoor setting,” Fauci said. “It is unfortunate, because that’s such a sacred part of American tradition — the family gathering around Thanksgiving. But that is a risk.”
Fauci said his three children will not be coming to his home for the holiday because of their concern for their 79-year-old father, who has a higher risk for the virus because of his age.
But safe Thanksgiving celebrations could be held, Fauci continued, if people have been recently tested for the coronavirus or are living a lifestyle with “very little interaction with others.”
“When you’re talking about relatives that are getting on a plane, being exposed at an airport, being exposed on a plane, then walk in the door and say, ‘Happy Thanksgiving,’ that you have to be careful about,” Fauci said.
His comments came after Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, attributed an increase in COVID-19 cases in America to “small household gatherings.”
He said that should serve as a warning for upcoming holidays.
“And particularly with Thanksgiving coming up, we think it’s really important to stress the vigilance of these continued mitigation steps in the household setting,” Redfield said on a call with governors, according to CNN.
