Here are the latest COVID-19 case numbers confirmed Tuesday in Washington state
The Washington state Department of Health reported 2,197 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 31 deaths Tuesday. Hospitalization rates are now exceeding April’s peak and one in five intensive care unit beds in Washington is occupied by suspected and confirmed COVID-19 patients.
Pierce County reported 282 cases Tuesday and six new deaths. Pierce County has a total of 241 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 167,216 cases and 2,805 deaths, up from 165,019 cases and 2,774 deaths Monday. Washington’s population is estimated at about 7.6 million, according to U.S. Census figures from July 2019.
Fifty-five people were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Nov. 12, the most recent date with complete data. Average daily hospitalizations peaked in early April at 78. Preliminary data indicates that record was exceeded on Nov. 18 and is now over 100 admittances per day.
Approximately 9.9% of all staffed adult acute care hospital beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients on Tuesday. In the state’s intensive care units, 21.2% of staffed adult beds were occupied by suspected and confirmed COVID-19 patients.
On Nov. 20, the most recent date with complete testing data, 12,746 specimens were collected statewide, with 23.5% testing positive. The average positive test rate for the seven days prior was 11.1%. More than 3 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 45,127 cases and 887 deaths. Pierce County is second, with 17,441 cases, according to the state’s tally. That number differs from the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department’s tally due to lags in reporting data. Yakima County has the second highest number of deaths at 297.
All counties in Washington have cases. Only five counties have case counts of fewer than 100.
For the past seven days, Washington had a case rate of 33.1 per 100,000 people. The national rate for the same period is 48.7 per 100,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Minnesota has the highest rate in the United States, at 107.6. Hawaii is the lowest, at 5.7.
There have been more than 13.6 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 270,003 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 1.4 million people have died from the disease worldwide. Global cases exceed 63 million.
