Here‘s who in Whatcom County is increasingly getting COVID-19
Of the 793 people tested during the first weekend of the pilot drive-thru COVID-19 testing program offered by the Whatcom County Health Department and Whatcom Unified Command last week, the largest group to show up for testing was for those ages 18 to 29.
According to a health department overview, 28% of those tested, or 222 people, fell within that age range during the two days of testing Friday and Saturday, July 10-11, at Civic Stadium.
“Overall, we found it pretty evenly spread across the age demographics,” Whatcom County Health Department Director Erika Lautenbach said during a press briefing Wednesday, July 16. “But we did see 28% in that 18 to 29 demographic. As we’ve talked about with the media before, that has been a target area for us, so we’re glad to see that age group so well represented.”
The reason the health department has been targeting residents in that age range, or more specifically Whatcom County residents under the age of 40, is because it is that demographic that has seen the largest increase in confirmed coronavirus cases the past two months.
A look at data provided in Whatcom Unified Command’s daily situation reports shows that Whatcom County residents under the age of 40 accounted for 49% of all COVID-19 infections as of July 10. That is a large increase from the 27% of all coronavirus cases that demographic was responsible for on April 10 — one month after the county’s first positive test was announced.
Meanwhile, the county’s percentage of people infected over the age of 59 shrank from 46% on April 10 to 28% on July 10.
Here is what the first four months of data for each of the five age groups the health department tracks show:
▪ People under 20: The health department reported the age group had only 3% of all coronavirus cases in the county as of April 10, which calculates to approximately eight people (depending on rounding) of the 250 cases the county had at that time. As of July 10, that number had jumped to 101 people, which is 15% of the 667 cases where age was reported. The age group saw a 162.5% growth in cases from May 11 to June 10 and a 140.5% increase between June 10 and July 10. The health department also reported the age group has seen two hospitalizations (3% of all COVID-related hospitalizations) and no deaths related to COVID-19 as of July 10.
▪ People between 20 and 39: More than a third (34%) of all coronavirus cases in the first four months have come from this age group, as there were 225 infections as of July 10. That has grown from 24% of the county’s cases as of April 10, which calculated to approximately 60 cases. This age group saw a 73.1% increase between June 10 and July 10. The health department also reported the age group has seen six hospitalizations (10%) and no deaths related to COVID-19 as of July 10.
▪ People between 40 and 59: As of July 10, 157 Whatcom residents in the age group had tested positive for coronavirus, which is 24% of all cases in the county. After having the largest percentage of cases as of April 10 at 28%, this is has been the most consistent age group with 25% as of May 11 and 24% as of June 10. The health department also reported the age group has seen 16 hospitalizations (27% of county total) and one death (2%) related to COVID-19 as of July 10.
▪ People between 60 and 79: As of July 10, 106 Whatcom residents in the age group had tested positive for coronavirus, which represents 16% of all cases in the county. The county’s percentage of cases for the demographic has steadily dropped since it was 21% of all coronavirus cases as of April 10. The health department also reported the age group has seen 21 hospitalizations (35% of county total) and eight deaths (20%) related to COVID-19 as of July 10.
▪ People over 80: The percentage of people over 80 to test positive for the new coronavirus has been more than halved from 25% as of April 10 to 12% as of July 12. Only two people 80 or older tested positive for COVID between June 10 and July 10, when that demographic represented 78 cases total as of July 10. Twenty-one people 80 or over have been hospitalized (25% of all COVID-related hospitalizations in the county reported as of July 10) and 32 have died (78% of all COVID-related deaths in the county reported as of July 10).
A second weekend of low-barrier, drive-thru coronavirus testing, which is free, is set for 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, July 17 and 18, at the Civic Field Stadium parking lot.
