Here are Tuesday’s COVID-19 cases totals for Pierce County
Pierce County reported 90 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, with one additional death.
The latest death involved a Tacoma man in his 40s.
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department no longer assigns underlying condition status to individual deaths it reports and instead counts underlying conditions as part of a percentage of the total number of deaths, which as of March 9 was 74 percent.
The county’s totals are now 37,645 cases and 492 deaths since the first confirmed coronavirus case was reported in March 2020.
The 14-day case rate per 100,000 is 141.7, with six-day data lag, down from 237.7 Feb. 16. That data point offers the most reliable look at COVID-19 disease burden in Pierce County, according to health officials. Case numbers for the most part have been declining in Pierce County for a few weeks.
An estimated 3,300 cases remain active in the county, down from 7,200 estimated Feb. 1.
Testing is available at various places. More information on testing is available on the health department’s website.
GEOGRAPHIC TOTALS
Tuesday’s cumulative geographic totals with previous day’s totals in parentheses:
▪ Bonney Lake: 1,013 (1,010)
▪ Central Pierce County: 1,725 (1,720)
▪ East Pierce County: 1,657 (1,652)
▪ Edgewood/Fife/Milton: 1,533 (1,532)
▪ Frederickson: 1,362 (1,359)
▪ Gig Harbor area: 1,184 (1,182)
▪ Graham: 1,254 (1,251)
▪ JBLM: No longer reported
▪ Key Peninsula: 347 (345)
▪ Lake Tapps/Sumner area: 1,361 (1,354)
▪ Lakewood: 3,096 (3,090)
▪ Parkland: 1,876 (1,875)
▪ Puyallup: 2,173 (2,171)
▪ South Hill: 2,120 (2,119)
▪ South Pierce County: 1,212 (1,211)
▪ Southwest Pierce County: 550 (540)
▪ Spanaway: 1,778 (1,766)
▪ Tacoma: 10,528 (10,507)
▪ University Place: 1,221 (1,217)
▪ Unknown: 1,655 (1,657)
VACCINES
As of March 16:
▪ About 251,335 total doses given in Pierce County, according to state Department of Health’s data dashboard.
More than 2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given throughout the state, and 84.01 percent of all doses received in the state had been administered. The current seven-day average is 42,551 vaccines a day, compared with the goal of achieving 45,000 vaccines given per day. About 20.71 percent of the state population has initiated vaccination, with 11.94 percent fully vaccinated.
On March 17, the state is opening vaccines for those in Phase 1B Tier 2, including high-risk critical workers who work in certain congregate settings: agriculture; fishing vessel crews; food processing; grocery stores; corrections; prisons, jails or detention centers; public transit; remaining first responders. Also included: People 16 years or older who are pregnant or have a disability that puts them at high risk for severe COVID-19 illness.
You can go to FindYourPhaseWA.org to check eligibility. Go to tpchd.org/vaxtothefuture for information on local sites offering vaccines.
PHASE 3
On March 11, Gov. Jay Inslee announced that all counties in the state would move to Phase 3 in the state’s reopening plan starting March 22. Counties will be re-evaluated individually every three weeks with the next metrics released April 12.
Pierce County must meet two metrics to remain in Phase 3:
▪ Fewer than 200 new cases per 100,000 over two weeks
▪ Fewer than five new hospitalizations per 100,000 over one week.
Additionally, if the statewide intensive care unit capacity reaches greater than 90 percent, all counties will revert to Phase 1.
In the new plan, the county will no longer be a part of the 3-county Puget Sound Region with King and Snohomish counties.
This story was originally published March 16, 2021 at 2:01 PM.
