Latinos suffering high coronavirus rates in state. All Tri-Cities cases up another 5%

The Hispanic population in Washington state is suffering from an elevated rate of new coronavirus infections, according to data from the Washington state Department of Health.

The state says 13 percent of the state’s population is Hispanic, but the Hispanic population accounts for 21 percent of the COVID-19 cases in the states for which race or ethnicity is known. There have been 965 known cases in the Hispanic population statewide.

However, just 7 percent of the deaths for which race or ethnicity is known, or 21 deaths, in the state have been in the Hispanic population.

Race and ethnicity is known for about half the cases in the state.

Data by race and ethnicity is not available for Benton and Franklin counties, where all deaths have been in people at least 60 years old.

The death toll from complications of COVID-19 for the two counties remained at 27 on Saturday.

The number of cases increased to 464 on Saturday, a jump of about 5 percent from the day before. The increase in cases from Thursday to Friday was about 9 percent.

Cases to date on Saturday included 315 in Benton County and 149 in Franklin County.

In both counties 349 cases have been confirmed through testing.

The health district also is counting 115 probable cases in people who were not tested but have had symptoms and close contact with people who had confirmed cases.

A shortage of testing supplies has limited the number of patients who can be tested in the Tri-Cities area.

As of Friday, the latest information available, 97 healthcare workers in the two counties were known to have had COVID-19.

The number of cases in Tri-Cities retirement communities and long-term care homes was 161, with information last reported by the health district on Friday.

Nineteen of the 27 deaths in the two counties were associated with those homes for the elderly.

The most cases have been at Life Care Center of Richland with 86 cases in staff and residents and Regency Canyon Lakes in Kennewick with 50 cases.

Walla Walla County health officials also are reporting an outbreak linked to a workplace near the Tri-Cities, which it has not named.

They report six people in the Burbank and Wallula area south of Pasco and three in Walla Walla with COVID-19 linked to the workplace outbreak.

This story was originally published April 11, 2020 at 1:23 PM.