Public Health – Seattle & King County, Washington State Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020 are reporting of three presumptive positive cases of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), including one person who died.

That victim is the first fatality due to the virus in the U.S.

This brings the total of presumptive positive cases in King County to four.

    • Two of the confirmed cases are associated with the LifeCare nursing facility in Kirkland:
      • One is a health care worker from LifeCare. She is a woman in her 40s, is currently in satisfactory condition at Overlake Hospital, and she has no known travel outside the United States.
      • The second case, a woman in her 70’s, is a resident at LifeCare and is in serious condition at EvergreenHealth Hospital.
    • In addition, over 50 individuals associated with LifeCare are reportedly ill with respiratory symptoms or hospitalized with pneumonia or other respiratory conditions of unknown cause and are being tested for COVID-19. Additional positive cases are expected.
    • The death occurred in a patient at EvergreenHealth Hospital but was not a resident of the long-term care facility.

Public Health officials are currently working with LifeCare to provide care for ill patients while protecting uninfected patients. The CDC is sending a team of epidemiologists to King County to support our efforts to identify, isolate and test all of those who may be at risk because of these new cases.

Public Health is at the very beginning stages of this investigation and new details and information will emerge over the next days and weeks.

“This is a tragic loss of life and we share our heartfelt condolences with the family,” said Dr. Jeff Duchin, Health Officer for Public Health – Seattle & King County. “While the vast majority of cases of COVID-19 are believed to be mild, the virus can be a very serious infection that can lead to death. Protecting the health of our community and supporting the care of health care workers is our top priority.”

Here’s a video of a press conference held on Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020:

GOVERNOR ISSUES STATE OF EMERGENCY
Also on Saturday, Gov. Jay Inslee proclaimed a State of Emergency for Washington due to the coronavirus.

By doing so, Inslee also ordered into active service the National Guard and State Guard.

“As a result of this event, I also hereby order into active state service the organized militia of Washington State to include the National Guard and the State Guard, or such part thereof as may be necessary in the opinion of The Adjutant General to address the circumstances described above, to perform such duties as directed by competent authority of the Washington State Military Department in addressing the outbreak. Additionally, I direct the Washington State Department of Health, the Washington State Military Department Emergency Management Division, and other agencies to identify and provide appropriate personnel for conducting necessary and ongoing incident related assessments.”

Here’s Inslee’s full proclamation:

PROCLAMATION BY THE GOVERNOR 20-05

WHEREAS, On January 21, 2020, the Washington State Department of Health confirmed the first case of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the United States in Snohomish County, Washington, and local health departments and the Washington State Department of Health have since that time worked to identify, contact, and test others in Washington State potentially exposed to COVID-19 in coordination with the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); and

WHEREAS, COVID-19, a respiratory disease that can result in serious illness or death, is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is a new strain of coronavirus that had not been previously identified in humans and can easily spread from person to person; and

WHEREAS, The CDC identifies the potential public health threat posed by COVID-19 both globally and in the United States as “high”, and has advised that person-to-person spread of COVID-19 will continue to occur globally, including within the United States; and

WHEREAS, On January 31, 2020, the United States Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar declared a public health emergency for COVID-19, beginning on January 27, 2020; and

WHEREAS, The CDC currently indicates there are 85,688 confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide with 66 of those cases in the United States, and the Washington State Department of Health has now confirmed localized person-to-person spread of COVID-19 in Washington State, significantly increasing the risk of exposure and infection to Washington State’s general public and creating an extreme public health risk that may spread quickly; and

WHEREAS, The Washington State Department of Health has instituted a Public Health Incident Management Team to manage the public health aspects of the incident; and

WHEREAS, The Washington State Military Department, State Emergency Operations Center, is coordinating resources across state government to support the Department of Health and local officials in alleviating the impacts to people, property, and infrastructure, and is assessing the magnitude and long-term effects of the incident with the Washington State Department of Health; and

WHEREAS, The worldwide outbreak of COVID-19 and the effects of its extreme risk of person- to-person transmission throughout the United States and Washington State significantly impacts the life and health of our people, as well as the economy of Washington State, and is a public disaster that affects life, health, property or the public peace.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Jay Inslee, Governor of the state of Washington, as a result of the above- noted situation, and under Chapters 38.08, 38.52 and 43.06 RCW, do hereby proclaim that a State of Emergency exists in all counties in the state of Washington, and direct the plans and procedures of the Washington State Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan be implemented. State agencies and departments are directed to utilize state resources and to do everything reasonably possible to assist affected political subdivisions in an effort to respond to and recover from the outbreak.

As a result of this event, I also hereby order into active state service the organized militia of Washington State to include the National Guard and the State Guard, or such part thereof as may be necessary in the opinion of The Adjutant General to address the circumstances described above, to perform such duties as directed by competent authority of the Washington State Military Department in addressing the outbreak. Additionally, I direct the Washington State Department of Health, the Washington State Military Department Emergency Management Division, and other agencies to identify and provide appropriate personnel for conducting necessary and ongoing incident related assessments.

Signed and sealed with the official seal of the state of Washington this 29th day of February, A.D., Two Thousand and Twenty at Olympia, Washington.

By:

Jay Inslee, Governor

BY THE GOVERNOR:

Secretary of State

For more information about COVID-19 in King County visit: www.kingcounty.gov/covid