Whatcom Health reports 129 negative test results for COVID-19 on Monday, March 16
The number of people in Whatcom County who tested negative for COVID-19 has grown to 129 as of Monday morning, March 16, according to the Whatcom County Health Department.
That was up from the 111 as of Sunday, March 15.
The Whatcom County numbers come through the Washington Disease Reporting System.
The number of Whatcom County residents who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus remains at three. Two cases were reported last week and the third on Sunday.
On Monday, March 16, Western Washington University confirmed that the third case — a woman in her 20s — was a Western student who lived off-campus in Bellingham.
The test was administered at the Student Health Center on campus, according to a university briefing. So far, 10 of its tests have come back negative as of Monday afternoon.
Also on Monday, the Whatcom County Health Department said it will no longer report specific locations of public exposures to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.
The department did that last week when it notified the public that they may have been exposed from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 10, to a person who tested positive for the novel coronavirus and who was at the buffet at Silver Reef Casino during that time.
Why the change?
Public health officials said that there is evidence of increasing spread of COVID-19 in the community, even though the number of confirmed cases are low for now.
“Local and regional case and contact investigations indicate that people are being infected without contact to a known case and in people without a travel history. This and other evidence tells us that that there are far more underlying cases in the community than the known lab-confirmed cases,” the Whatcom County Health Department said in a release.
That change likely isn’t going to please people who want that information, along with details on where people who have tested positive for the illness have moved about in the community.
Public health officials are asking Whatcom County residents to help slow the spread of the illness over concerns that the health care system will be overwhelmed if too many people are sickened at the same time.
“We must all take action so that we make sure those with serious illness or injuries are able to get the care they need,” the department said.
Officials here are reminding people that washing their hands frequently, staying home when they’re sick, and social distancing are the most effective strategies in slowing the spread of novel coronavirus.
People with mild symptoms should stay home and away from others until 72 hours after the fever is gone and symptoms get better.
Social distancing means staying at least six feet away from other people.
To slow the spread of the illness in Washington, which has become the epicenter of the outbreak in the U.S., Gov. Jay Inslee has ordered social distancing by limiting large gatherings and temporarily closing nearly all the places that people gather including K-12 public and private schools in the state, restaurant seating, bars, hair salons and entertainment venues.
More than 181,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed worldwide, with more than 7,100 deaths as of Monday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 4,200 confirmed cases, with at least 74 deaths.
The Washington State Department of Health reported 48 deaths and 904 confirmed cases in the state as of Monday afternoon.
At least 43 people have died of COVID-19 in King County, four in Snohomish County, and one in Grant County. So far, confirmed cases have been found in 18 counties — Clark, Columbia, Grant, Grays Harbor, Island, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Lewis, Lincoln, Pierce, Skagit, Snohomish, Spokane, Thurston, Whatcom and Yakima. The list also includes cases that are unassigned to counties.
About coronavirus
COVID-19, which stands for coronavirus disease 2019, is the name of the illness that first appeared in late 2019 in Wuhan, China, before spreading to other countries, including the U.S. It is caused by a virus named SARS-CoV-2.
The contagious disease is spread through contact between people within six feet of each other — what’s referred to as close contact — especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby.
The CDC says it’s possible to catch COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
Symptoms — cough, fever, difficulty breathing — may occur two days to two weeks after exposure. Although most of the cases have been mild, the disease is especially dangerous for the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.
Stay informed
▪ https://whatcomcounty.us/ncov. Email general questions about COVID-19 in Whatcom County to covid@co.whatcom.wa.us.
▪ doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/Coronavirus. Call a hotline at 1-800-525-0127 for questions about what is happening in Washington state, how the virus spreads, and what to do if you have symptoms. Phone lines are staffed 6 a.m. to 10 p.m, seven days a week.
▪ cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.
▪ cob.org/services/safety/emergencies/Pages/covid-19.aspx
▪ https://www.lummi-nsn.gov/Website.php?PageID=215
This story was originally published March 16, 2020 at 11:53 AM.
