Thurston County COVID-19 cases continue to climb as transmission remains high
Thurston County reported 721 additional COVID-19 cases over the past week as the virus continues to spread widely.
However, no new deaths were reported.
Public Health and Social Services confirmed the cases for the week of July 18-24. The latest weekly case count is higher than the 615 cases reported the week prior, continuing a trend that started the first week of July. For the week of July 25-31, PHSS has already reported 349 additional cases.
In all, PHSS has confirmed 54,831 cases and 410 deaths since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. However, recent case counts are undercounted due to the widespread use at-home tests that are often not officially recorded.
The Washington state Department of Health continues to describe disease activity in Thurston County as “high,” the most severe rating.
However, the county’s case rate per 100,000 people fell to 196.9 from July 12-18, according to the state. The week of July 5-11, the data show the county had a case rate of 258.4.
Though an improvement, the county’s case rate has fluctuated above and around 200 since May. So, it remains to be seen if this decrease heralds a significant drop.
In any event, the county’s case rate remains well above 100, the state’s threshold for “high” activity.
As of July 21, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention still ranked Thurston County’s Community Level as “high.” It’s been five weeks since the CDC labeled the county’s risk as “medium.”
Grays Harbor and Mason counties also are considered high risk by the CDC. But Pierce and Lewis counties were rated as “medium.”
With a “high” rating, the CDC recommends people wear masks in indoor public settings and on public transportation. Those at higher risk for severe illness should consider additional precautions.
The CDC determines community levels by weighing new hospital admission and inpatient bed data after considering cases per 100,000 in the past seven days.
Hospitalizations
There were about 11.4 hospital admissions per 100,000 Thurston County residents over a seven-day period ending on Monday, according to CDC data.
About 8.7% of staffed in-patient beds were being used by patients with confirmed COVID-19 over the same period, the data shows.
State DOH data indicates about 92.2% 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 17.6% of ICU beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients in the region.
Hospitals in the region were 91.8% full over the seven-day period, while COVID-19 patients accounted for 15.5%.
PHSS recorded 24 hospitalizations in Thurston County from July 21-27. In all, county data show 2,637 COVID patients have been hospitalized at some point in their illness since the start of the pandemic.
About 75% of county residents who were hospitalized had a known underlying condition, but it’s possible some had an unknown underlying condition.
Among the people who died of COVID before Sunday, 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 255 such outbreaks – three more than the previous week.
The 38 active outbreaks as of Sunday included 12 adult family homes, 10 assisted living facilities, four congregate housing settings, one correctional facility, and 11 nursing facilities.
Vaccines and testing
About 66.6% of all Thurston County residents had completed their primary series of vaccinations as of Monday. Meanwhile, about 73.7% had a least initiated their primary series, state data shows.
The state also reports 58% 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 have gotten a booster by the same day.
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.
Over-the-counter COVID-19 antigen tests are available at pharmacies and on-order for Washington residents from Say Yes! COVID Test and the federal government.
In the region
Pierce County has confirmed 212,187 total COVID-19 cases with 1,450 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 19,284 confirmed cases with 268 deaths as of Tuesday. 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 18,603 cases with 209 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 high COVID-19 community level.
Mason County has reported 12,990 confirmed cases with 148 deaths as of Tuesday. Mason County has a population of about 69,000. The CDC indicates Mason County has a high 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 13,462 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic to Tuesday.
In the U.S., about 90.9 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 573.8 million people had contracted the virus and over 6.3 million people had died of COVID-19 as of Wednesday, the data show.
