WA Department Of Health Reports 10 Deaths, 479 Coronavirus Cases

SEATTLE — The Washington State Department of Health confirmed 10 additional deaths and 479 more lab-confirmed coronavirus cases on Thursday.

Deaths were reported in Benton, Grant, King, Kitsap, Pierce, Thurston, and Yakima counties.

The latest update means that 75,856 total coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Washington since the pandemic began, and 1945 people have died. Crunching the numbers, that means that, of all patients diagnosed with the coronavirus in Washington, 2.6 percent end up passing away from COVID-19.

A total of 1,518,089 coronavirus tests have been performed in the evergreen state, meaning around 5 percent of tests come back positive.

King County reexamines death toll

The health departments for two of Washington's largest counties are taking some extra steps to make sure that coronavirus information presented to the public is accurate and transparently reported.

In King County, the health department has released a new report examining official death counts for any potential misreports. After combing through the death toll in King County, officials say they're confident they did not miss many potential COVID-19 deaths, nor did they accidentally overreport the number of people killed by the virus.

"This report gives us confidence that our official death counts are not missing large numbers of people who have died from COVID-19," said Dr. Jeff Duchin, health officer for King County. "And it highlights that although the COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care facilities that led to many deaths among older residents have decreased in response to effective COVID-1 prevention measures, the threat remains."

To see if deaths had been underreported, public health officials analyzed the number of total deaths this year, compared with a recent year, and found 817 more deaths between January 1 and August 18.

Read more: Public Health Report Examines King County Coronavirus Deaths

Pierce County explains confusing CDC report

A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has, the Tacoma - Pierce County Health Department says, caused quite a bit of misinformation and confusion, which they hope to dispel.

According to that report, COVID-19 was the only cause of death listed on just 6 percent of death certificates counted in the total coronavirus death toll. And while that's true, Pierce County Health says it isn't proof that the response to this pandemic has been an overreaction.

"The CDC didn't mention the other 94% of people who died had COVID-19 and other contributing conditions," writes Lora Davis epidemiologist for Tacoma - Pierce County Health. "They died from COVID-19 and, on average, 2.6 contributing conditions listed on death certificates."

"Multiple causes of death is the norm," writes Davis.

The coronavirus can cause other illnesses, like pneumonia, hypoxia, and septicemia, which would then be listed as a cause of death alongside COVID-19 in any death report. In addition, the coronavirus is always more serious for those who have underlying health problems, so if a patient died from the virus but also had previously been diagnosed with heart disease, lung disease, or obesity, those might also show up on death certificates.

Read more: Pierce County Health Clarifies Confusion Surrounding CDC Report

Washington rated best state to work amid pandemic

Washington officials are touting a new study which rated Washington as the best state in the country to work in during the coronavirus pandemic. Other top contenders included Oregon, which came in tenth place, and California, which ranked third.

The study, performed by researchers with Oxfam America, evaluated each state on several metrics like healthcare availability, unemployment benefits, and worker protection laws. Washington scored highly on two metrics, ranking second in worker protections and first in unemployment benefits, and placed in a respectable 10th place for healthcare access, giving Washington overall the highest score out of all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

Despite the good news however, the governor says he knows there is still more to be done to help Washingtonians make it through the pandemic.

"I recognize this work is not done. We continue to hear every day of challenges faced by workers as more return to their work places and job sites. I remain committed to doing this work until the crisis is over, and beyond," Inslee said.

Read more: Study: Washington #1 State To Work In Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

King County declares caregivers day in honor of tireless work

King County Executive Dow Constantine has signed a proclamation declaring this Friday, September 4, be the first ever King County Caregiver Day. Its a day to recognize all the hard work done by caregivers in assisted living homes and communities in the long months since the pandemic began.

In that proclamation, the county recognizes that "the importance of caregivers has been magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic, as they are imperative in helping to keep vulnerable people safe and health at home."

It also notes that more than one in five Americans have provided care to an adult or child with special needs at some point over the past year.

Read more: Friday Declared King County Caregivers Day

Total coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths by county:

The above numbers are provided by the state Department of Health, and some numbers differ from the totals provided separately by county health agencies.