12 New Coronavirus Cases, 2 Deaths Confirmed In King County
May 23, 2020 | News | No Comments
SEATTLE, WA — Health officials on Sunday confirmed 12 new cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, in King County, including two deaths. The new numbers bring the county’s total to 83. More than 100 cases have been confirmed in Washington, with 19 reported deaths.
The two new deaths are a woman in her 80s, a resident of Life Care Center in Kirkland, who was hospitalized at EvergreenHealth and died on Friday; as well as a man in his 90s, also a Life Care resident, who was hospitalized at Harborview Medical Center and died Thursday.
In King County, 16 of the 17 confirmed deaths have been associated with Life Care, which has come under scrutiny for an alleged lack of preparation prior to the outbreak. One death has also been reported in Snohomish County.
The new King County cases were among the 34 new confirmed cases announced across Washington on Sunday. The state’s latest numbers include 31 infections in Snohomish County, four in Pierce County, and one each in Grant, Jefferson, Clark and Kittias counties.
Another death, in Grant County, was announced by local officials Sunday.
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Since the outbreak started, Life Care transferred 54 of its 120 residents to hospitals. Since Feb. 19, 28 residents have died — 17 of whom were already in the hospital, according to numbers shared by Life Care. It’s unclear whether the remaining 11 deaths that happened at the facility were caused by coronavirus or a similar illness, the release said, because no post-mortem information was available.
Currently, 70 Life Care employees are showing COVID-19 symptoms, according to the release, and are not actively working at the facility.
President Donald Trump signed an $8.3 billion coronavirus spending bill Friday, boosting the money available for federal, state and local efforts to combat the growing outbreak of COVID-19.
Gov. Jay Inslee joined Rep. Susan DelBene and Rep. Derek Kilmer for a news conference in Seattle Friday morning to break down what those numbers mean for Washington, described Thursday by Vice President Mike Pence as the “tip of the spear” in the U.S. coronavirus response.
Through the federal relief bill, Washington is expected to receive $11.5 million. King County officials estimate the COVID-19 outbreak is costing the county at least $100,000 per day. Dow Constantine, King County Executive, said he expects to spend at least $50 million in the short-term.
Gov. Jay Inslee said lawmakers in Olympia also approved $100 million in state funds to assist with the growing needs of the health care response.
Public Health Guidance On Virus Prevention:
Patch staffers Lucas Combos and Megan VerHelst contributed to this report.
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