Tri-Cities COVID cases already 3 times higher daily than a few weeks ago

The number of new confirmed COVID cases reported in the Tri-Cities area on Tuesday jumped to 194, the Benton Franklin Health District reported.

Daily case counts have not been that high since July, when case counts were near their peak.

The cases reported on Tuesday bring the number of cases in the past four days to an average of 136 per day.

That compares to an average of 82 new cases per day last week and 42 a day the week in mid-October. Local cases are reported on a weekly schedule from the weekend through Friday.

The most recent case rates per 100,000 residents are 335 cases over the two weeks ending Nov. 3 for Franklin County and 296 for Benton County, according to the local health district.

The state set a rate of 75 per 100,000 people over two weeks as high risk for school reopening.

But the Benton Franklin health officer, Dr. Amy Person, says some schools nationally and internationally have shown that they can reopen with higher new area case rates with limited in-school transmission if strict safety protocols are followed.

Local health officials blame the rising case rates on colder weather that has driven people indoors, where the coronavirus spreads more easily.

Some of the most recent increase may be due to Halloween parties and other gatherings.

Health officials are concerned about the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, with more nonhousehold get-togethers likely and people traveling.

Tri-Cities deaths, cases

There were no new deaths from complications of COVID-19 reported on Tuesday, leaving the total for the Tri-Cities area at 191.

That includes 128 residents of Benton County and 63 of Franklin County.

The majority of the new confirmed cases reported Tuesday in the Tri-Cities area, 75%, were in Benton County.

Benton County had 145 new cases and Franklin County had 49 new cases.

They bring the total cases in Benton County since the start of the pandemic to above 6,000 at 6,081.

The new cases confirmed in Franklin County bring its total to 5,220, or 11,301 for both counties together.

The number of patients being treated for COVID at local hospitals on Tuesday was not immediately available.

The drive-thru COVID testing sites at the HAPO Center in Pasco and near the Columbia Basin College Pasco campus will be closed on Wednesday for Veterans Day.

Other testing sites in the area are posted at bfhd.wa.gov/covid19.

Washington state

The Washington state Department of Health reported 1,239 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday and 21 deaths since Friday.

Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 118,570 cases and 2,460 deaths, up from 117,331 cases and 2,439 deaths Sunday. Washington’s population is estimated at about 7.6 million, according to U.S. Census figures from July 2019.

Twenty-five people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Oct. 21, the most recent date with complete data. Average daily hospitalizations peaked in early April at 78.

On Oct. 29, the most recent date with complete data, 20,997 specimens were collected statewide, with 5.5% testing positive. The average positive test rate for the seven days prior was 4.7%. More than 2.6 million tests have been conducted in Washington.

The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction tests, which are administered while the virus is presumably still active in the body.

King County continues to have the highest case numbers in Washington, with 31,186 cases and 826 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 12,214 cases and 281 deaths. Pierce is third with cases at 11,673 and 238 deaths, according to the state’s tally.

Benton and Franklin rank sixth and seventh for cases, following Spokane and Snohomish as of the numbers reported for all counties on Monday. If Benton and Franklin counties were considered together, they would rank fourth.

All counties in Washington have cases. Eight counties, including Columbia, have case counts of fewer than 100.

For the past seven days, Washington had a case rate of 17.1-per-100,000-people. The national rate for the same period is 33, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. North Dakota has the highest rate in the United States at 155.8. Vermont is the lowest at 4.9.

There have been more than 10 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 238,053 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Monday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The United States has the highest number of reported cases and deaths of any nation, although some other countries have higher rates based on population. More than 1.2 million people have died from the disease worldwide. Global cases exceed 50 million.

The (Tacoma) News Tribune contributed to this report.

This story was originally published November 10, 2020 at 1:54 PM.