Omicron Cases May Be Nearing Peak In Western Washington
OLYMPIA, WA — The omicron wave may be nearing its zenith, at least in Western Washington. As Washington approaches two years of COVID-19 — the official anniversary of Washington's first COVID case is Thursday — state health leaders are expressing cautious optimism that the worst of the omicron wave may soon be behind us.
"There is some hope that we may be at or close to the peak in Western Washington," said Dr. Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett, Chief Science Officer for the Washington State Department of Health said at a DOH briefing Wednesday. "However, we are also seeing an acceleration in the growth of cases in some parts of Eastern Washington, so overall in our state the situation will continue to be difficult over the coming weeks."
The omicron variant accounts for "practically all" of Washington's new cases, Kwan-Gett said. The more-transmissible variant has been tearing through the state since early December, causing an unprecedented spike in case counts and hospitalizations.
"This has been one of the most concerning waves," said Secretary of Health Dr. Umair Shah.
Shah and other health experts stress that the Evergreen State is not out of the woods yet — case counts remain high and record hospitalizations have put enormous strain on health care providers across the state — but after weeks of rapid growth, plateauing case counts are a good sign of better times to come.
Meanwhile, deaths remain on a steady decline, though that decline has leveled off somewhat this week.
"We are not sure if this is a harbinger of perhaps a rise in deaths, which we sometimes see after a rise in cases and hospitalization, or if this is just a temporary plateau," Kwan-Gett said
As of the DOH's latest update Monday, there have been 1,105,622 total COVID-19 cases in Washington, 49,490 COVID-related hospitalizations, and 10,320 deaths. To keep those totals from climbing higher and to accelerate the downward trend, Shah, Kwan-Gett and other DOH officials urge Washingtonians to practice COVID-safe behaviors by avoiding crowds, wearing masks in public, and seeking vaccination or booster shots if they are eligible for either.
"It's more important than ever to do all we can to support our healthcare workers," Kwan-Gett said. "Hospitalizations and deaths are higher among unvaccinated than vaccinated individuals. Get vaccinated as soon as possible."
As of Jan. 18, the DOH says that 78.9 percent of Washington's population 5 and older have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 71.6 percent are fully vaccinated. In addition, half of eligible Washingtonians have received their booster shots.
Following new CDC guidance, the state is also asking residents to upgrade from cloth masks to more protective options, like N95 or surgical masks.
Finally, the state asks that residents avoid hospitals and emergency rooms unless they are at serious risk. Hospitals continue to struggle with heavy patient loads, and can only afford time to treat the seriously ill. Just last week, Gov. Jay Inslee mobilized the Washington National Guard to help ailing hospitals, and put a month-long pause on non-emergency procedures.
"There is a tremendous amount of work being done on the ground," Shah said. "I want to recognize all who are doing the right thing. We will have brighter skies ahead, we just need to do the right thing for ourselves and for each other."
This article originally appeared on the Lakewood-JBLM Patch
