Coronavirus update: Kitsap County's COVID-19 cases up 184%; Washington cases surge 132%

Mike Stucka
·4 min read
People waited more than four hours Thursday morning for COVID-19 testing at the state testing site at the Sarasota Kennel Club in Florida. (Mike Lang/Sarasota Herald-Tribune)
People waited more than four hours Thursday morning for COVID-19 testing at the state testing site at the Sarasota Kennel Club in Florida. (Mike Lang/Sarasota Herald-Tribune)

New coronavirus cases leaped in Washington state in the week ending Sunday, rising 132.1% as 81,996 cases were reported. The previous week had 35,334 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Washington state ranked 35th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States increased 75.9% from the week before, with 4,967,431 cases reported. With 2.29% of the country's population, Washington had 1.65% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 49 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

The New Year's holiday weekend significantly disrupted who got tested, how many people got tested, what labs operated and what government agencies reported on time. Many of the New Year's weekend reports were shifted into the latest week, and the previous week was disrupted by late reporting from the weekend of Christmas. Consequently, week-to-week comparisons will be skewed and these numbers will be unreliable even as they're accurate to what states reported.

Read more: COVID-19 testing becomes scarce in Kitsap as omicron cases surge

Kitsap County reported 2,394 cases and one death in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 841 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic, it has reported 22,445 cases and 265 deaths.

Mason County reported 511 cases and eight deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 141 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic, it has reported 7,479 cases and 101 deaths.

Related: Local school superintendents warned about omicron peak, possible school closures

Within Washington state, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Pierce County with 1,551 cases per 100,000 per week; King County with 1,254; and Snohomish County with 1,231. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Adding the most new cases overall were King County, with 28,259 cases; Pierce County, with 14,037 cases; and Snohomish County, with 10,119. Weekly case counts rose in 38 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Washington state ranked 17th among states in the share of people receiving at least one shot, with 76.3% of its residents at least partially vaccinated. The national rate is 74.3%, a USA TODAY analysis of CDC data shows. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are the most used in the United States, require two doses administered a few weeks apart.

In the week ending Sunday, Washington state reported administering another 231,730 vaccine doses, including 47,250 first doses. In the previous week, the state administered 177,419 vaccine doses, including 33,966 first doses. In all, Washington state reported it has administered 12,811,945 total doses.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

In Washington state, 151 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 69 people were reported dead.

A total of 931,071 people in Washington state have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 10,004 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States, 60,074,429 people have tested positive and 837,594 people have died.

Washington's COVID-19 hospital admissions rising

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Jan. 9.

Likely COVID-19 patients admitted in the state:

  • Last week: 2,726

  • The week before that: 2,248

  • Four weeks ago: 1,764

Likely COVID-10 patients admitted in the nation:

  • Last week: 187,807

  • The week before that: 147,897

  • Four weeks ago: 91,573

Hospitals in 49 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 39 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 50 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Washington COVID-19 updates: Kitsap County's coronavirus cases up 184%