Coronavirus Activity Growing In King County, Health Officer Warns

KING COUNTY, WA — After a steady decline in coronavirus illness since the third wave of infections, and a plateau reached in mid-February, case counts are again trending higher in King County.

Dr. Jeff Duchin, King County's health officer, detailed the concerning metrics during his weekly briefing Friday, noting the especially precarious timing as variants gain traction and more widespread availability of vaccines is still several weeks away.

"Last week, the forecast was mostly sunny with a chance of rain," Duchin said Friday. "This week, [it's] still mostly sunny, but there are storm clouds on the horizon."

Duchin said daily case trends increased about 13 percent over the last two weeks, with a clear majority of infections among adults between 18 and 49 years old. State health officials have noted a similar trend in younger adults across Washington.

A bright spot in King County's data is a sharp decrease in cases among older, more vulnerable age groups, declining 40 percent over the same timeframe. Duchin credits the county's success in immunizing a large portion of older adults for the remarkable shift.

While younger people are far less likely to die from a COVID-19 illness, he cautioned such infections can still pose serious health risks.

"Vaccines have greatly reduced the threat to our most vulnerable older adults, but COVID-19 can still put a very big hurt on the rest of us if we falter now," Duchin said. "COVID-19 is not a benign disease for younger adults. Hospitalization rates for COVID-19 are 20 times higher than they are for influenza for 18 to 49-year-olds."

Duchin also pointed to research from the University of Washington, which found 30 percent of participants experienced prolonged symptoms, or "long COVID," which can affect the quality of life well after an initial illness.

The recent rise in cases also coincides with the spread of more infectious variants, including some believed to cause more severe illness. That reality, mixed with more indoor and social activities resuming as Washington reaches the third reopening phase could quickly have a snowball effect.

"As much as I would like it to be, this pandemic is not over. The risk is not gone, the virus is still with us, and more harmful variants are increasing. Current rates of transmission remain substantial, with thousands of people with infectious COVID-19 in King county each day. Optimism is great, and it's important, and we will be headed toward better, safer, healthier times over the coming months. But we can't let optimism blind us to the reality and the uncertainty of our situation. We're still giving the virus too many opportunities to spread right now, and increasing variants is a dangerous combination."

Duchin noted that a growing number of cases are already being linked to social gatherings, community events, visits to restaurants and bars, and increased travel.

"We've had an increase in travel-associated cases since January from 3 percent to 7 percent," he said. "In that context, I want to emphasize CDC's current travel guidance, particularly as Spring Break is approaching and we know that there are multiple variants of concern present throughout the country as well as internationally."

Federal guidance continues to advise against non-essential travel. Those who choose to travel should get tested one to three days before the trip and three to five days after returning and quarantine while awaiting results.

"If we have too much activity without taking precautions, COVID-19 will rebound," Duchin said. "So, please remember face masks, understand the importance of ventilation, open doors, open windows, limit time with others in crowded indoor air spaces. It's incredibly important to remember how this disease spreads through the air."

King County prepared to its triple vaccination efforts, but eligibility still outpaces supply

King County made more vaccination strides this week and is ready to ramp up its efforts considerably once deliveries can catch up with demand. According to the latest data, more than 530,000 King County adults have received at least one dose, and close to 16 percent of the population is fully vaccinated.

Success is particularly apparent among older adults, with 83 percent of people 75 and older having received at least one dose, and 78 percent of those between the ages of 65 and 74. While the county is still working to increase vaccine equity among racial and ethnic groups, some regional disparities have improved. Duchin said adults ages 65 and above living in South King County now have vaccination rates comparable to those in Bellevue, Issaquah and Mercer Island.

This week, Washington entered Phase 1B2, expanding eligibility to more essential workers, pregnant people and those with disabilities that place them at higher risk. With the addition of the new groups, Duchin estimated about 400,000 unvaccinated residents are currently eligible for their first shots. On March 31, another 2 million Washingtonians will qualify.

However, federal deliveries have not kept up with the growing need. Right now, Duchin estimates the county received one dose for every eight people currently eligible — a ratio he expects to improve eventually.

On Thursday, state health officials said the federal government promised a substantial boost to deliveries in April, which could nearly double the number of doses sent to Washington each week. Until the supply catches up with demand, there may be a few speedbumps left.

"Everyone that's becoming eligible needs to understand that eligibility is not guaranteed access," Duchin said. "Under no circumstance can we pretend that we have the appropriate and adequate number of doses to vaccinate everyone who needs one, who is eligible for one right now."

The good news, Duchin said, is the county is already capable to dramatically increase its vaccination efforts once supply allows.

"We can probably distribute three times as many as we're currently administering today," Duchin said. "When those doses become available, we'll be able to get them out much more efficiently."

At full capacity, Seattle's Lumen Field Event Center is poised to administer 23,000 vaccinations every day. Duchin said Friday that the county could open up to eight additional high-volume sites if needed, and will continue to add more community vaccine events and expanding mobile outreach efforts.

• Learn more about getting vaccinated on the King County website and review the progress in your area on the county dashboard.
• Need an appointment? Check out the state's new Vaccine Locator tool.

Duchin also took some time in his Friday briefing to address the Atlanta spa shootings and speak against a broader trend of violent crimes against Asian-American and Pacific Islanders, seen locally and nationally.

"The recent news about the rise in hate crimes, discrimination and violence targeting Asian-Pacific Islander communities both nationally and locally is profoundly disturbing and shameful. From the earliest days of the pandemic here, we've recognized the xenophobia, blame and racist targeting of our Asian-Pacific Islander communities. We understand the pandemic has impacted not only the physical and mental health of so many in our community, its also exacerbated acts of violence that can lead to further trauma for communities of color. Because racism and violence are public health issues, as health officer I want to add my voice to denounce violence and discriminatory speech and any such actions taken to harm someone because of their race or place of origin. We know here at public health that it's been a particularly difficult week for many of our community members, and I and all of my colleagues here stand in solidarity with you."