Coronavirus updates: State reaches 240k cases; vaccine distributed at site of first deadly outbreak
Updated at 9:45 a.m.
The Washington state Department of Health reported 2,201 new cases of COVID-19 and 174 deaths Tuesday. The death number includes about 200 cases that were previously unreported due to a processing issue, DOH said.
Pierce County reported 370 cases Tuesday and five new deaths. Pierce County has a total of 288 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 240,846 cases and 3,369 deaths. The case total includes 9,122 cases listed as probable. Those numbers are up from 238,645 cases and 3,195 deaths on Monday. DOH revises previous case and death counts daily.
Washington’s population is estimated at about 7.6 million, according to U.S. Census figures from July 2019.
One hundred thirty people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Dec. 10, the most recent date with complete data.
Preliminary reports indicate average daily hospital admissions were 102 in late-December.
About 14.6% (1,280) of all staffed adult acute care hospital beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients Tuesday. In the state’s intensive care units, 21.7% (265) of staffed adult beds were occupied by suspected and confirmed COVID-19 patients.
Restaurant held in contempt for violating COVID restrictions, Washington judge says
Updated at 9:45 a.m.
A restaurant in Washington is being held in contempt of court for offering indoor dining after getting a restraining order demanding it comply with state COVID-19 restrictions, a Thurston County judge ruled Tuesday.
The restaurant, Farm Boy Drive-In in Olympia, faces a $2,000 fine for every day they continue to offer indoor dining, according to the contempt charge.
“We need to fight,” Brian Robbins, Farm Boy’s owner, told a crowd of supporters who gathered at the Thurston County Superior Court building in protest of the judge’s order, a Facebook live video shows. “We need to bring it to the governor’s house.”
The Department of Labor and Industries filed a motion on Dec. 23 to hold the restaurant in contempt. The motion was filed after investigators drove by and discovered the restaurant was still serving customers inside, Tim Church, a spokesman for the department, told McClatchy News in a phone interview.
The department also noted that the restaurant had made public statements about continuing to offer indoor dining, which was addressed in the Thurston County Superior Court hearing Tuesday.
Virus vaccine distributed at site of first deadly cluster
Updated at 9:45 a.m.
The residents and staff members at a Seattle-area nursing home that had the first deadly COVID-19 outbreak in the United States began receiving vaccines on Monday.
The first death associated with the Life Care Center of Kirkland, Washington, was reported in late February, and more than 40 people connected to the facility later died of coronavirus.
The Seattle Times reports that Monday was the first day long-term care facilities can receive vaccines under a federal partnership with CVS and Walgreens, which is handling shots for the bulk of the state’s approximately 4,000 long-term care facilities.
Along with health-care workers, Washington state has recommended that nursing home residents receive the vaccine first, followed by residents of assisted-living facilities, adult family homes and other care sites. State officials have set a goal for all residents to receive the first dose of the two-dose vaccine by the end of January.
“I think everyone in the skilled nursing industry is thankful that a vaccine is available and being administered, but it means a little more to see vaccinations happening at Kirkland,” Ellie Schutt, executive director of Life Care Center of Kirkland, said in a statement.
This story was originally published December 30, 2020 at 9:54 AM.
