WA COVID Counts, Hospitalization Rates Remain At Record Highs

OLYMPIA, WA — COVID-19 case counts and hospitalization rates remain exceptionally high across Washington, as the latest wave of infections fueled by the delta variant moves full steam ahead. The Washington State Department of Health hosted a news briefing Wednesday morning to outline the latest trends, including a surge in hospital admissions that continues to strain the state's health care system.

"This pandemic is not slowing down," said Dr. Umair Shah, state Secretary of Health. "If anything it has sped up. In just a couple of months, the delta variant has ravaged our state. It has preyed particularly on those who are unvaccinated. Those unvaccinated persons, unfortunately, have largely driven our cases and our hospitalizations."

Dr. Steve Mitchell, a medical director at Harborview Medical Center, said hospitals across the state remain fuller than ever, with resources in many areas stretched to their limits. Officials estimate the number of COVID-19 patients has doubled every 18 or 19 days, and Mitchell said some more rural and facilities are seeing stretches with no available critical care beds. Many hospitals are also contending with critical staffing shortages.

With respect to case counts, the state's chief science officer said they remain higher than previous peaks. However, there is an early glimmer of hope in the latest data showing the rise may finally be starting to level off.

"The good news in this, in some of the incomplete data we're seeing a stalling or flattening of our rise in cases, so that's very promising," said Dr. Scott Lindquist. "Not sure if that's going to hold over the next week or so, so we'll certainly update you guys next week as we see this data."

Even as infections and hospitalizations soar to new highs, Washington's death rates have remained stable for months, which officials credit to high immunization rates among the most vulnerable age groups.

On the vaccination front, DOH estimates roughly 1.9 million eligible residents have yet to receive a shot. While recent weeks have brought an upswing in people seeking immunizations, officials said too many remain at risk for serious illness. According to state estimates, close to 95 percent of COVID-19 hospitalizations between February and august were among patients who were not fully vaccinated.

"We've had a 21 percent increase in vaccinations over the last week, [and] a 34 percent increase over the last few weeks," Shah said. "That's great from a percentage standpoint, but it still represents a small number overall from a quantity standpoint, and we want to make sure we see those numbers increase as best we can."