Coronavirus updates: State reaches 31,752 Sunday; fishers now qualify for federal loan
This page includes coronavirus developments around Washington state for Sunday, June 28.
Updated at 3:05 p.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Sunday reported 348 new cases of COVID-19 and no additional deaths.
Death reporting from June 27 and 28 may be artificially low due to a data issue that will be corrected June 29, the DOH website says.
Statewide totals have reached 31,752 cases and 1,310 deaths. Totals were 31,404 cases and 1,310 deaths on Saturday.
King County continues to be the hardest hit with 9,895 cases and 610 deaths. Yakima County has 6,920 cases and 152 deaths while Snohomish County has 3,438 cases and 168 deaths. Pierce County reported 21 new cases and no deaths on Sunday, bringing its totals to 2,487 cases and 87 deaths.
Garfield, the state’s least populous county, remains the only county without a reported case. Six other counties are reporting fewer than 10 cases each.
There are 51 cases that have not been assigned to a county.
There were 23 people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 admitted to state hospitals on June 20, the most recent date with complete data. The total number of people who have been hospitalized in the state stood at 4,275 on Sunday.
There have been 534,443 tests conducted in the state with 5.9% coming back positive.
The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which are given to patients while the virus is presumably still active in the body.
Pierce County reports 21 new cases
Updated at 2 p.m.
Pierce County reported on Sunday 21 new COVID-19 cases and no additional deaths.
The county’s totals are now at 2,487 cases and 87 deaths since the first confirmed case was reported in March.
There have been 40.8 new cases per 100,000 residents during the past 14 days, the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department website says. Pierce County has had 368 new cases during that period, an average of 26.3 cases per day.
Saturday’s count of 55 new cases was the highest one-day total the county has reported since April 17.
As of Sunday, the county reported an estimated 541 active cases.
Daily case totals can change as the county receives new information about cases, finds duplicate data or is assigned cases originally attributed to other counties.
Sunday’s geographical case totals are listed below with Saturdays totals in parentheses:
▪ Bonney Lake: 51 (no change)
▪ Central Pierce County: 168 (166)
▪ East Pierce County: 63 (62)
▪ Edgewood/Fife/Milton: 110 (109)
▪ Frederickson: 83 (82)
▪ Gig Harbor area: 65 (no change)
▪ Graham: 75 (74)
▪ JBLM: No longer reported
▪ Key Peninsula: 11 (no change)
▪ Lake Tapps/Sumner area: 66 (no change)
▪ Lakewood: 261 (258)
▪ Parkland: 146 (143)
▪ Puyallup: 172 (171)
▪ South Hill: 128 (no change)
▪ South Pierce County: 47 (no change)
▪ Southwest Pierce County: 28 (no change)
▪ Spanaway: 85 (no change)
▪ Tacoma: 803 (798)
▪ University Place: 105 (102)
▪ Unknown: 20 (no change)
Fishers now qualify for federal loans intended to help businesses
Updated at 8:45 a.m.
Fishers are now able to count their crew as part of their employee payroll to qualify for federal loans intended to help businesses following economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The federal rule change was published Thursday after captains discovered crew members, who typically receive pay in shares of the catch, could not be included in the first federal relief aid program, The Seattle Times reported.
Fishers have been contending with poor markets as restaurants closed or reduced service to limit the spread of COVID-19.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. But for some — especially older adults and people with existing health problems — it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
Seafood Harvesters of America President Robert Dooley and Executive Director Leigh Habegger wrote a letter in May to U.S. senators to request support for the rule change arguing that the loan is a critical lifeline for the industry.
“We believe the purpose and intent of the Paycheck Protection Program is to help protect small businesses, including commercial fishing businesses. But as it stands now, that does not hold true and fishing businesses and crew members are unable to effectively access full PPP benefits,” the letter said.
Habegger said Thursday that she hopes eligible fishers will take advantage of the program before a June 30 deadline for applications.
The Paycheck Protection Program loans may be forgiven if certain conditions are met, including spending a large portion of the money to retain employees.
Washington state reaches 31,404 cases
Updated at 8:45 a.m.
The Washington State Department of Health reported 549 new COVID-19 cases and six deaths Saturday.
Statewide totals have reached 31,404 cases and 1,310 deaths, up from 30,855 cases and 1,304 deaths Friday.
King County continues to report the state’s highest counts for cases (9,809) and deaths (610), while Yakima County has 6,828 cases and 152 deaths and Snohomish County has 3,431 cases and 168 deaths.
Pierce County reported 55 new cases Saturday, bringing its totals to 2,466 cases and 87 deaths.
Twenty of the state’s 39 counties have reported more than 100 cases, and 11 counties have reported at least 10 virus-related deaths.
Garfield, the state’s least populous county, remains the only county without a reported case. Six other counties are reporting fewer than 10 cases each.
There are 53 cases that have not been assigned to a county.
There were 23 people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 admitted to state hospitals on June 19, the most recent date with complete data. The total number of people who have been hospitalized in the state stood at 4,240 on Saturday.
There have been 525,802 tests conducted in the state with 6% coming back positive.
The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which are given to patients while the virus is presumably still active in the body.
Inslee and Wiesman announce pause on county progressions to Phase 4
Updated at 8:45 a.m.
Gov. Jay Inslee and Sec. John Wiesman announced Saturday the Washington State Department of Health is putting a pause on counties moving to Phase 4 though the “Safe Start” phased approach. Rising cases across the state and concerns about continued spread of the COVID virus have made Phase 4, which would essentially mean no restrictions, impossible at this time.
Eight counties were eligible to move from Phase 3 to Phase 4 before the pause.
“Phase 4 would mean a return to normal activity and we can’t do that now due to the continued rise in cases across the state,” Inslee said. “We all want to get back to doing all the things we love in Washington during the summer, and fully open our economy, but we aren’t there yet. This is an evolving situation and we will continue to make decisions based on the data.”
“The best thing Washingtonians can do to slow the spread of the virus and save lives is to wear facial coverings, continue to maintain physical distancing and good hygiene practices,” Wiesman said. “Now that testing supplies are available, it is critical to get a test if you have any symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 or have been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19.”
This story was originally published June 28, 2020 at 8:50 AM with the headline "Coronavirus updates: State reaches 31,752 Sunday; fishers now qualify for federal loan."
