14 More Coronavirus Deaths In Washington, 577 New Cases Confirmed

SEATTLE, WA — The department of health confirmed 577 new coronavirus cases and 14 additional deaths in Washington Thursday, as the state's testing capacity expands and COVID-19 continues to spread throughout the region.

The state now has 4,310 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 189 deaths. Initially the epicenter of the U.S. outbreak, Washington now ranks behind New York, New Jersey, California and Michigan by total confirmed cases. It ranks second in deaths behind New York, which has confirmed more than 700.

Statewide, Saturday's updated totals reflected a larger increase than the previous day's, when Washington confirmed 516 new cases. However, there were fewer new deaths Saturday than on Friday, when the state confirmed 28.

The biggest increase Saturday came in King County, where officials confirmed 249 new cases and 11 deaths. Washington's most populous county now has 2,077 confirmed cases and 136 deaths, the most in the state.

Inslee addresses dispute with Trump over coronavirus aid

Gov. Jay Inslee on Saturday addressed an ongoing dispute with President Trump over the federal government's coronavirus aid to states. At a news conference, Inslee renewed his call for President Trump to seize control of American manufacturing to force companies to produce much-needed medical supplies.

"It would be helpful to for the federal government to mobilize the manufacturing base of the United States to make ventilators, to make visors, to make N95 masks," Inslee said at Saturday's news conference, devoted to the new shelter being built at CenturyLink Field Event Center in Seattle.

On a Thursday conference call with other governors, Inslee reportedly took issue with Trump's claim that the federal government serves as a "backup" in times of emergency.

"I don't want you to be the backup quarterback; we need you to be Tom Brady here," Inslee replied, according to multiple reports. On Friday, Trump did invoke his emergency powers to force General Motors to produce ventilators.

“I am grateful that he followed my advice,” Inslee said Saturday.

Washington still needs more hospital beds to accommodate future coronavirus patients and is asking the federal government to provide more, Inslee said Saturday. Inslee has also asked Trump to extend disaster unemployment benefits to Washington, which the president has not done.

Homeless people around Seattle face a new risk

Four COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in at least three homeless shelters, officials reported Saturday, citing the county's own tests as well as a positive test from the Seattle Flu Study.

Meanwhile, a report from ProPublica found that many homeless people around the United States were already in the throes of a crisis before the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Now, many are being crammed into tight shelters as authorities try to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among homeless people, ProPublica reports. But social distancing is much harder to implement among people who often have little choice but to eat and sleep in close, communal settings, like shelters and tent encampments.

Social distancing is "damn near impossible" in The Sophia Way, an all-women's shelter in Bellevue, said Alisa Chatinsky, the shelter's executive director. "We don't have the space."

Coronavirus cases by county

Illnesses confirmed statewide: 4,310 (189 deaths)

King: 2,077 cases (136 deaths)
Snohomish: 912 cases (23 deaths)
Pierce: 282 cases (5 deaths)
Spokane: 108 cases (2 deaths)
Whatcom: 102 cases (4 deaths)
Yakima: 100 cases (2 deaths)
Skagit: 97 cases (3 deaths)
Island: 92 cases (1 death)
Clark: 82 cases (6 deaths)
Benton: 56 cases (5 deaths)
Kitsap: 49 cases
Grant: 44 cases (1 death)
Thurston: 33 cases
Franklin: 16 cases
Chelan: 13 cases (1 death)
Jefferson: 13 cases
Cowlitz: 10 cases
Kittitas: 8 cases
Klickitat: 7 cases
Lewis: 7 cases
Whitman: 6 cases
Clallam: 5 cases
Douglas: 5 cases
Adams: 5 cases
San Juan: 4 cases
Walla Walla: 4 cases
Okanogan: 3 cases
Stevens: 3 cases
Mason: 2 cases
Columbia: 1 case
Grays Harbor: 1 case
Lincoln: 1 case
Ferry: 1 case
Skamania: 1 case
Unassigned: 160 cases*

*Health agencies are still working to determine the appropriate jurisdiction for cases marked "unassigned."

Total tested: 59,196
Negative: 54,896 (93%)

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