Health & Fitness
Coronavirus Death Toll Drops By 5 As State Rethinks Counts
The coronavirus death toll actually dropped Wednesday as the state removed several miscounted deaths. Catch up on other recent developments.
SEATTLE, WA — State health officials on Wednesday reported 26,784 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, and 1,226 deaths due to the disease. That's 253 new cases of the virus over Tuesday's total, and five fewer deaths.
It should be impossible for the death toll to go down, but health officials have a very simple explanation and it involves how the death tolls are counted. Before Wednesday, the death toll included anyone who had the coronavirus and had passed away, but that didn't account for rare cases where someone had the virus, but died for a different reason.
After noticing the issue and recounting, the department of health discovered that seven previously reported deaths, four in King County and three in Yakima County, were not due to the coronavirus. Instead, those seven cases were made up of two suicides, three homicides, and two fatal drug overdoses. All seven patients did have the coronavirus, but it wasn't what killed them.
As a result, those seven deaths were removed from the death toll, and accounting for the two new deaths the state reported Tuesday, the total count dropped by five.
To avoid making a similar mistake in the future, the Department of Health says they've got a plan they'll be rolling out over the next few weeks, and it involves expanding how coronavirus deaths are reported. When the plan is implemented, each COVID-19 death classification will be graded on a sale of 1-4 as follows:
- The coronavirus absolutely contributed to the death, confirmed by the death certificate and testing.
- The coronavirus probably contributed to the death, confirmed by the death certificate but lacking testing information.
- The coronavirus is suspected to have contributed to the death. A follow up will then be conducted to determine the cause of death.
- The coronavirus did not contribute to the death, including cases of homicide, car accident, or other diseases.
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DOH finds inflated negative test results
The same day they recalibrated the death toll, the Washington State Department of Health also confirmed that it had misreported the number of negative coronavirus tests. According to a statement from the DOH, officials had been mistakenly counting negative antibody tests alongside negative swab tests, when the total should only include regular coronavirus swab tests. As a result of the error, the state reported about 13 percent more negative coronavirus tests than there actually were.
The issue didn't affect the number of new coronavirus cases in any way, but the percent of negative tests is one of the key metrics the state uses to determine how well counties are handling the pandemic, and is used to judge which counties can enter the next phase of Gov. Inslee's Safe Start plan.
Yesterday before noticing the error, the state had reported that just 5.5 percent of coronavirus tests came back positive. After recalibrating to account remove the excess negative tests, the state is now reporting that 6.2 percent of tests come back positive. The state's ultimate goal is to eventually reduce that down to below 2 percent positive tests.
Respiratory therapist accused of stealing ventilators
A therapist with Veteran's Affairs has been accused of stealing COVID-19 treatment supplies and reselling them for a profit.
Attorneys say 41-year-old Gene Wamsley of Bonney Lake stole three ventilators and five bronchoscopes, among other respiratory support supplies and re-sold them on eBay.
"Right now respiratory support equipment is critical in medical care for those suffering with COVID-19 infections. To steal and sell equipment needed to care for our veterans is a shocking betrayal," United States Attorney Brian T. Moran said in a statement.
Wamsley made his first appearance in court Wednesday. If convicted, theft of government property is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Read more: Respiratory Therapist Accused Of Stealing, Selling Ventilators
Coronavirus cases by county
| County | Confirmed Cases | Hospitalizations | Deaths |
| Adams | 101 (+1) | 7 | 0 |
| Asotin | 20 | 1 | 2 |
| Benton | 1,236 (+18) | 177 (+1) | 74 |
| Chelan | 276 (+3) | 19 | 6 |
| Clallam | 32 (+3) | 3 | 0 |
| Clark | 630 (+1) | 97 | 27 |
| Columbia | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Cowlitz | 120 (+2) | 19 | 0 |
| Douglas | 184 (+1) | 12 | 3 |
| Ferry | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Franklin | 1,044 (+39) | 111 (+4) | 26 |
| Garfield | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Grant | 310 (+42) | 30 | 5 |
| Grays Harbor | 21 (+1) | 7 | 0 |
| Island | 184 (+1) | 32 | 11 |
| Jefferson | 32 | 6 | 0 |
| King | 8,885 (+35) | 1,707 (+4) | 591 (-4) |
| Kitsap | 180 (+2) | 27 | 2 |
| Kittitas | 92 | 1 | 0 |
| Klickitat | 49 | 6 | 3 |
| Lewis | 41 (+1) | 12 (+1) | 3 |
| Lincoln | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Mason | 41 (+1) | 5 | 1 |
| Okanogan | 61 (+3) | 5 | 1 |
| Pacific | 12 | 2 | 1 |
| Pend Orielle | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Pierce | 2,179 (+36) | 386 (+5) | 89 |
| San Juan | 16 | 1 | 0 |
| Skagit | 469 (+5) | 54 | 15 |
| Skamania | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Snohomish | 3,187 (+16) | 592 (+4) | 159 (+1) |
| Spokane | 870 (+24) | 99 (+2) | 37 |
| Stevens | 16 (+1) | 4 | 1 |
| Thurston | 197 | 32 | 5 |
| Wahkiakum | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Walla Walla | 124 (+2) | 8 | 3 |
| Whatcom | 457 (+2) | 53 | 39 |
| Whitman | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Yakima | 5,651 (+54) | 419 (+6) | 122 (-2) |
| Unassigned | 25 (-22) | 3 (-4) | 0 |
| Total | 26,784 | 3,938 | 1,226 |
The above numbers are provided by the state Department of Health, and some numbers differ from the totals provided separately by county health agencies.
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