Coronavirus death toll rises to 10 in Washington; Pence to travel to state Thursday
The death toll rose to 10 on Wednesday among Washington state’s reported coronavirus (COVID-19) cases.
According to numbers from the state Department of Health, Snohomish County now has 8 coronavirus cases, and 1 death.
In King County, there are 31 cases and 9 deaths.
Statewide, the tally is up to 39 confirmed cases and 231 individuals under public health supervision.
There are no confirmed cases so far in Pierce County.
Those under supervision include those at risk of having been exposed to novel coronavirus and who are monitoring their health under the supervision of public health officials. This number also includes people who have returned from China in the past 14 days and are included in federal quarantine guidance.
King County for now is taking a more active approach in terms of containment. On Wednesday it issued new recommendations on its county health website for those working or living in King County.
Those at higher risk of severe illness should stay home and away from large groups of people as much as possible, including public places with lots of people and large gatherings where there will be close contact with others, according to the website. People at higher risk include folks 60 and older; those with underlying health conditions, including heart disease, lung disease or diabetes; people who have weakened immune systems and people who are pregnant
It also encouraged workplaces to enact measures allowing for telecommuting, also encouraging individuals to consider postponing events and gatherings.
“Public Health is not recommending closing schools at this time unless there has been a confirmed case in the school. Public Health – Seattle & King County also respects an individual school’s decisions about closures or postponement of activities as each school knows the needs of their community best.”
The agency also advised avoiding hospitals, long-term care facilities or nursing homes in King County if possible. If you need to go, limit your time there and keep six feet away from patients.
For more details go to this link.
With no confirmed COVID-19 cases in Pierce County, its health department’s recommendations are not as stringent as King County’s for now. Pierce County recommendations are at this link.
Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department stated on its website: “If our area experiences spread of COVID-19, our playbook includes plans for social distancing. That could mean: canceling public gatherings, keeping people home from work, and closing schools.
“We aren’t recommending those strategies now. If that changes, we will quickly tell the public, businesses and other government agencies.”
Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department has issued guidelines for health care workers in Pierce County to help manage the number of calls coming in:
▪ Do not call Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department after hours (outside 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Monday–Friday) to report suspected COVID-19 patients. Use the forms linked on its website to report suspected COVID-19 patients during or after business hours.
▪ For hospitalized patients who meet clinical criteria, collect respiratory specimens and hold for Washington State Department of Health approval the next business day.
“We are working with the State Public Health Laboratories to test people in Pierce County who meet the CDC’s testing criteria. We will share if we have a positive case,” the department noted on its website.
California on Wednesday reported its first COVID-19 death, an elderly individual with underlying health issues.
According to health officials, the person was likely exposed to the virus while overseas on a Princess cruise ship that departed from San Francisco to Mexico between February 11 and 21. The patient had “minimal community exposure” after returning from the cruise. They arrived at the hospital by ambulance less than a week later on Feb. 27.
— The Sacramento Bee contributed to this report.
VICE PRESIDENT PLANS TRIP TO OLYMPIA
Vice President Mike Pence announced Wednesday on Twitter that he is coming to Olympia on Thursday to meet with Gov. Jay Inslee in light of the state’s coronavirus cases.
Pence is overseeing the Trump administration’s national response to the coronavirus. In Washington state, 10 deaths so far have been tied to the virus.
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray criticized the Trump administration for its slow response to the new coronavirus outbreak at a health committee hearing Tuesday, March 3, in Washington, D.C.
“We’re doing everything in our power to prevent the coronavirus from further coming to the United States, but we’re also working every bit as hard to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus in this country,” Pence said at a White House gathering of diagnostic lab executives.
“I’ll be traveling to Olympia in Washington state, meeting with Governor Jay Inslee,” Pence said. “We’ll be taking our entire team there with an effort to really continue to support Governor Inslee’s efforts to focus resource on the community in the Seattle area and in California that’s been uniquely impacted by the coronavirus.”
Meanwhile, Washington state now has the ability to test more people for COVID-19, or coronavirus, after the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention decided Wednesday to lower the threshold for that test.
Gov. Jay Inslee announced the change during a meeting with reporters Wednesday morning at the state Department of Health in Tumwater. He toured the emergency operations center there after visiting Camp Murray at Joint Base Lewis-McChord earlier in the day. He also visited Maple Lane in south Thurston County, where the state has set up a potential isolation and quarantine site using RVs.
“We now have been given a green light to increase the frequency and protocols under which people can be tested,” he said.
He said the state Public Health Laboratories have increased testing and the University of Washington has recently come online to do testing. Inslee also called on private labs to help.
University of Washington Medicine launched a new validated test to detect coronavirus this week that’s expected to increase testing capability locally and across the nation.
UW Medicine is expected to test 1,000 samples for COVID-19 per day starting this week, researchers announced in a press conference on Wednesday.
“The test is currently being run on a daily basis,” said Keith Jerome, researcher with UW Medicine. “The laboratory is now operating 24 hours a day with an approximate throughput of 1,000 samples per day. That is currently adequate to meet the demand, and we have plans to ramp that up to levels substantially beyond that should the demand require it.”
— The News Tribune’s Allison Needles, Rolf Boone of The Olympian and Michael Wilner of McClatchy DC contributed to this report.
CLOVER PARK TECH SHUTS DOWN TWO CAMPUSES FOR CLEANING
Clover Park Technical College has suspended Lakewood and South Hill campus operations for Wednesday (March 4) after reports of a student under quarantine with symptoms similar to coronavirus.
College President Joyce Loveday said in a statement: “We received word late in the afternoon on Tuesday that a student from the South Hill campus is under quarantine at Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup. The student presented symptoms similar to those of COVID-19 and has been tested for the virus. Those test results will not be known until later this week. The student visited the South Hill campus while symptomatic but has not been on the Lakewood campus.”
Loveday added that “We will make a decision about campus operations for Thursday, March 5 at 3:00 p.m.”
A running list of coronavirus-related cancellations elsewhere in the state can be found here.
BELLIINGHAM AIRPORT JOINS OTHER SITES IN RAMPING UP PREVENTION
Airports in the state are getting additional attention in response to the statewide rise of coronavirus cases.
After cases were first reported in British Columbia and Seattle, Bellingham International Airport increased the number of times it cleans common areas like water fountains and fill stations, said Sunil Harman, director of aviation for the Port of Bellingham.
The airport has also added more hand sanitizer stations and increased inspections, he said in an email.
This coincides with the additional steps being taken at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, which includes more cleaning of “high touch” areas, particularly at international gates. It has also provided 45 additional hand sanitizer stations. The Sea-Tac airport has also updated cleaning protocols for shuttle buses and rental areas.
—Dave Gallagher, The Bellingham Herald
ATTORNEY GENERAL LOOKING AT REPORTS OF PRICE GOUGING
Washington state’s Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Wednesday he’s looking into reports of price gouging in the state as a result of COVID-19.
“My office is investigating price gouging in the wake of the COVID-19 public-health emergency. We do not identify the targets of our investigations, but we are taking formal investigative actions. If you see price gouging, file a complaint with my office.”
Reports last week surfaced of high prices charged for face masks and hand sanitizer on sites such Amazon by third-party vendors.
Information on filing a complaint is available here: https://www.atg.wa.gov/file-complaint
FREE AND REDUCED COST CONSULTATIONS FROM MULTICARE
MultiCare Health Systems announced this week that it was waiving the regular $25 fee for its e-visit care service amid the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases to help limit potential exposures in clinics.
In a statement posted on its website, the health care operator stated:
“As a public health service and to help avoid further community spread of COVID-19, MultiCare is offering free e-Visits to anyone who has COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, runny nose), with or without travel to China, Iran, Italy, Japan or South Korea, or anyone exposed to someone who has traveled to these areas.”
If you prefer a video visit, the $25 code can be applied to the $49 fee.
WHAT ARE CORONAVIRUSES?
Coronavirus, known as COVID-19, is spread through contact between people within six feet of each other, 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 include fever, cough and shortness of breath, which may occur two days to two weeks after exposure.The disease is especially dangerous for the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.
So far, more than 94,000 cases have been reported worldwide, with about 3,200 deaths, the vast majority of them in China. In the U.S.,128 cases have been reported, including 10 deaths in Washington state out of 39 reported cases. In California, one death has been reported, with 53 cases total.
This story was originally published March 4, 2020 at 11:30 AM with the headline "Coronavirus death toll rises to 10 in Washington; Pence to travel to state Thursday."
