Washington Reports 4 Deaths, 359 Coronavirus Infections

SEATTLE — The Washington State Department of Health reported 4 more coronavirus-related deaths and just 359 new cases of the virus Monday, continuing a trend in plateauing or declining case counts across the state.

Deaths were reported in King, Snohomish, and Spokane counties Monday.

Health officials say they believe the lowered case counts are a sign that the state's second wave of coronavirus infections may be on the way out, but continue to warn residents that lax behavior could cause a third wave of infections and deaths in the fall if transmission rates are not controlled.

The latest update mean a total of 1,867 Washingtonians have died due to the coronavirus, and 71,371 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed since the pandemic began.

Washington approved for $300 pandemic unemployment boost

Washington residents receiving unemployment will soon be receiving an extra $300 in benefits, now that the state has been approved to receive extra aid from FEMA.

"FEMA will work with Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to implement a system to make this funding available to Washington residents," FEMA said in a release Monday.

The state Employment Security Department says they are still unsure when those benefits will begin being send to recipient's accounts, but the payments will be retroactive to August 1. To be eligible for the extra cash influx, unemployment applicants must have filed their claims over a three-week period between July 26 and August 15, and must certify that they are unemployed at least in part because of the pandemic.

Governor Inslee confirmed at a conference last week the state was applying to receive the extra benefit boost, but said he remains concerned that the money is not as much as the $600 boost the federal government had offered earlier in the pandemic, which expired at the end of July.

Read more: Washington Approved For $300 Unemployment Aid Boost

UW seeks volunteers to test potential treatment

UW Medicine is seeking volunteers across Washington to help test a new potential treatment for the coronavirus. The treatment, a drug called LY3819253, is a blood infusion which contains coronavirus antibodies. Researchers say that, if the drug is successful, it should provide immediate protection against the virus which should last for several weeks after treatment.

So far, there have been no proven commercially available coronavirus treatments, so this test's success could potentially alter the course of the pandemic going forward.

To qualify, volunteers must be 18 or older and must have tested positive for the coronavirus in the last week before they entered the drug trial. Patients also must have shown at least one coronavirus symptom in the two days before they take the drug.

"People living in the Seattle area who have recently been diagnosed with COVID-19 and are not hospitalized have the opportunity to make a huge contribution by participating in this study," said infectious disease physician and UW professor of medicine Ann Collier.

UW is just one of 25 sites testing the drug. Nationwide, 220 patients will be enrolled in the trial— half of whom will receive a placebo and half will receive the real drug.

Read more: UW Medicine Seeks Volunteers To Test Coronavirus Treatment

45 confirmed cases in Bremerton medical center outbreak

An outbreak at the St. Michael Medical Center in Bremerton has now grown to 45 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. Of those, 30 were in medical center staff, and 15 were in patients.

The outbreak began early in the month: back on August 4, the Kitsap Public Health District was alerted that an employee at the center had tested positive for COVID-19. After investigating, on the 13th the health district determined that five more cases could be linked to the medical center. The next day they declared an outbreak at the center and recommended that all staff and patients be tested for the virus. Since then dozens more have tested positive.

To combat the outbreak, the hospital has continued thorough screening of staff and patients, but are also restricting visitation for patients and limiting movement between units.

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.