Thurston County adds 615 COVID cases last week as transmission risk remains ‘high’
COVID-19 disease activity in Thurston County increased over the past week and the transmission risk remained high.
Public Health and Social Services confirmed 615 new cases but no additional deaths the week of July 10-17.
In all, PHSS has confirmed 54,272 cases and 410 deaths since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. However, case counts are undercounted because so many people are using at-home tests that are most often not officially recorded.
The latest weekly case count is higher than the 533 cases reported the week prior. For the ongoing week of July 18-24, PHSS had already counted 712 cases as of Wednesday.
The state Department of Health continues to describe disease activity in Thurston County as “high” – the most severe rating. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also described Thurston County’s Community Level as “high” as of July 14, and recommends people wear masks in indoor public settings and on public transportation. Those at higher risk for severe illness also should consider additional precautions.
Among its immediate neighbors, Thurston County was the only one with a high rating. Grays Harbor, Lewis, Mason and Pierce counties were each labeled as “medium,” according to the CDC.
The county’s case rate per 100,000 people increased to 254.6 from July 5-11, according to the state. The week of June 28 to July 4, the data show the county had a case rate of 221.3.
This means the county’s case rate continued to rise well above 100, the state’s threshold for “high” activity.
Hospitalizations
There were about 13.8 hospital admission per 100,000 Thurston County residents over a seven-day period ending on Monday, according to data from the CDC.
Around 9.6% of staffed in-patient beds were being used by patients with confirmed COVID-19, the data shows.
State DOH data indicates about 93.8% of Intensive Care Unit beds were occupied over a seven-day period ending on Tuesday in the West region, which includes Thurston County and some of its neighbors.
The data show 16.6% of ICU beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients. Hospitals in the region were 92.9% full over the seven-day period, while COVID-19 patients accounted for 14.1%.
PHSS recorded 30 hospitalizations in Thurston County from July 14-20. Since the beginning of the pandemic, county data show 2,598 people have been hospitalized at some point in their illness.
About 75% of county residents who were hospitalized had a known underlying condition, according to the Tuesday weekly report. However, it’s possible some had an unknown underlying condition.
Among the people who have died of COVID-19, the report says all had a known underlying condition.
Outbreaks
PHSS was investigating 38 ongoing outbreaks at congregate care settings as of Wednesday. In all, there have been 252 such outbreaks — seven more than the previous week.
The weekly report indicates there were 38 active outbreaks as of Sunday. They included 12 adult family homes, nine assisted living facilities, four congregate housing settings, one correctional facility, one enhanced services setting, and 11 nursing facilities.
Vaccines and testing
About 66.5% of all Thurston County residents had completed their primary series of vaccinations as of Monday. Meanwhile, about 73.5% had a least initiated their primary series, state data shows.
The state also reports 57.9% of county residents 5 and older had received a booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine as of Monday. Across the state, about 57.6% of that population had gotten a booster.
Thurston County PHSS continues to offer free vaccination events, including for booster shots, every week. Upcoming events are listed on their coronavirus vaccine information website.
Eligible residents also can find appointments at pharmacies and other local providers by visiting the state’s Vaccine Locator website.
Those who have difficulty scheduling appointments online can call the Department of Health vaccine hotline at 888-856-5816 or the Thurston County Public Health and Social Services line at 360-867-2610. Information for Spanish speakers is available at these numbers as well.
Anyone who tests at home can report their results to Washington’s COVID-19 hotline at 800-525-0127. Thurston County residents also can call PHSS at 360-867-2610.
People can get PCR tests at pharmacies such as Rite Aid and Walgreens. Over-the-counter COVID-19 antigen tests are also available at pharmacies and on-order for Washington residents from Say Yes! COVID Test and federal government.
In the region
Pierce County has confirmed 210,493 total COVID-19 cases with 1,402 deaths as of Tuesday. Pierce County has a population of about 927,000. The CDC indicates Pierce County has a medium COVID-19 community level.
Lewis County has had a total of 19,166 confirmed cases with 266 deaths as of Tuesday, state data show. Lewis County has a population of almost 83,000. The CDC indicates Lewis County has a medium COVID-19 community level.
Grays Harbor County has seen a total of 18,469 cases with 207 deaths as of Tuesday, according to state data. Grays Harbor County has a population of about 75,000. The CDC indicates Grays Harbor County has a medium COVID-19 community level.
Mason County has reported 12,864 confirmed cases with 148 deaths as of Tuesday. Mason County has a population of about 69,000. The CDC indicates Mason County has a medium COVID-19 community level.
In the nation, state and world
The state of Washington has confirmed over 1.7 million COVID-19 cases and at least 13,376 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic to Tuesday.
In the U.S., about 90 million COVID-19 cases had been reported as of Wednesday with over 1 million deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The U.S. population is about 330 million.
Globally, more than 566.4 million people had contracted the virus and over 6.3 million people had died of COVID-19 as of Wednesday, the data show.
