Coronavirus cases continue to decline across Washington, health officials say

Novel coronavirus cases are continuing to go down across Washington, a trend health officials attribute partially to more people wearing masks and social distancing.

According to the latest situation report from the Washington State Department of Health, the effective reproductive number — the number of people one infected person will spread the virus to — was estimated to be at about 0.86 in Western Washington. In Eastern Washington, the reproductive number was estimated at about 1.22.

All across Washington as a whole, cases of COVID-19 have been declining, according to the report. Still, in some places such as Whitman County, where there was an outbreak among WSU students, cases of the virus shot up.

Health officials are continuing to warn that people need to remain vigilant, as the state still remains far above the target of having fewer than 25 new cases per 100,000 people over the previous 14 days.

“While we see some encouraging trends in case counts, the risk remains extremely high throughout the state,” Secretary of Health John Wiesman said in a statement. “The situation in Whitman County illustrates just how quickly an outbreak can wipe out our progress toward keeping case counts low. It is still critical that we limit the size and frequency of our in-person gatherings, wear face coverings and stay home when we are sick.”

Social distancing, mask wearing and avoiding large gatherings are some of the key actions driving the decline in coronavirus cases, the report said.

"People are interacting more safely than we were earlier in the pandemic, and it’s making a difference," a news release from DOH said.

"The report includes a model that isolates the effect of mobility changes from non-mobility related changes on COVID-19 transmission. The comparison suggests that while we are more mobile than we were in April, we are interacting more safely—taking precautions like wearing face coverings, restricting gathering size and keeping high-risk environments closed. We must continue these precautions to keep transmission decreasing."

In July, Gov. Jay Inslee took a number of steps to slow the spread of the virus as cases surged across the state. He put an indefinite pause on counties moving forward in the Safe Start Washington plan and put additional restrictions on restaurants, bars, gyms, weddings and funerals. Inslee earlier this year also put into place requirements mandating that people wear masks while inside and outside, if they weren't able to maintain six feet of distance between one another.

He also issued recommendations encouraging schools in counties with more than 75 new cases per 100,000 people to start the year off virtually to prevent the spread of the virus. Most school districts in King County started the year using a remote model, with the exception of a few private schools in the area.

As of Sunday, King County had 66 new cases per 100,000 people over the previous 14 days. Across the state, that number was slightly higher, at 81.3 new cases per 100,000 people over the previous 14 days.

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