Thursday’s data from the Snohomish Health District end the month on a cautiously optimistic note. New cases added Thursday (yellow chart) are down to 31 from Wednesday’s new case total of 63, which represented the largest one-day increment since April 10.

Likewise, currently active cases (red chart) – people who are currently ill with the disease – has decreased by 67 from Wednesday for a total of 883 Snohomish County residents down with virus.  Recoveries (green chart) are also up from the previous day, with 96 joining the ranks of the recovered. Countywide, a total of 2,671 residents have contracted the virus over the reporting period.

Numbers hospitalized with COVID-19 (purple chart) continue to remain relatively level, with 61 currently receiving care in a hospital, an increase of three since Wednesday.

Sadly, two deaths attributed to COVID-19 were added Thursday, this coming after two consecutive days of no reported deaths (gray chart). Over the full reporting period, 109 have died in Snohomish County as a result of the virus, a rate of 4.1 percent of the total infected.

Several of our readers have requested information on numbers of tests administered. Currently the Snohomish Health District does not include numerical testing data in their daily updates. We agree that this would be valuable to present, as it would have a significant bearing on how to interpret the various other data sets (i.e, does an increase in active cases tell us that more people have become sick with the virus, or has increased testing uncovered additional cases that have been there for some time). We have requested that they do this and will include it with our daily updates should it become available.

As we noted in Wednesday’s report, the Snohomish Health District is now reporting numbers of recoveries by city, and we have modified our local cities table below to include these along with active case and death numbers. For the individual cities and the county as a whole we estimate the number of currently active cases by subtracting the sum of total recoveries and total deaths from the case totals for the full reporting period.

The local numbers for April 30, 2020:

— By Larry Vogel

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From Snohomish County

The first 100 days of the Novel Coronavirus in Snohomish County

It has now been 100 days since the first reported case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed here in Snohomish County. A lot has changed since January 20.

Across our community, residents and businesses have suffered from losing loved ones, illness, fear, and the economic impacts. This pandemic has closed our schools, companies large and small, and recreational activities. Milestones and gatherings for graduations, funerals, and weddings have been impacted as well.

Snohomish County has also seen its communities banding together. People are volunteering and donating to help those in need. Businesses are adapting operations to fill critical needs and to keep customers safe. Schools are adjusting to a new way of educating students and supporting families. The community is rallying around frontline employees and healthcare workers.

While there is much left to do, the people and partners in Snohomish County have still weathered quite a storm. The Snohomish Health District, Snohomish County and the Department of Emergency Management’s Joint Information Center have created a video recapping some of those events and achievements.

VIDEO: A look back at the response to COVID-19 in Snohomish County

“I want to extend my sincere gratitude to our partners and the community for their support, collaboration, and resolve,” said Dr. Chris Spitters, Health Officer for the Snohomish Health District. “Public health has asked a lot of you in the first 100 days. Your sacrifices do not go unnoticed, and they are very much appreciated.”

“People from all across our community have suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers. “The public’s strong partnership and quick actions have been the key for driving down the curve in Snohomish County. We will continue to focus on saving lives, providing accurate information, and making decisions based on the best available science.”

“We found ourselves thrust into the spotlight in the early days of the pandemic, and I am proud of the work that the Snohomish Health District and Snohomish County have done in the months since then,” said Stephanie Wright, County Councilmember and Chair of the Board of Health. “The people of Snohomish County have proven once again just how strong and resilient our communities can be when we work together.”

From the State of Washington

Inslee announces new initiative to expand language access to COVID-19 information

Gov. Jay Inslee April 29 issued a memo to state agencies detailing a new language access plan that will ensure state agencies can provide vital COVID-19 information to individuals with disabilities and with limited English proficiency.

“Information is one of the best tools we have in this fight against COVID-19,” said Gov. Jay Inslee. “But not every community has equal access to information. This plan helps ensure every Washingtonian is better able to stay safe and healthy by making sure our state agencies are providing information that is culturally-relevant and accessible.”

The plan, which was developed in coordination with the state’s COVID-19 Joint Information Center (JIC), provides a streamlined new process for agencies to translate vital information related to COVID-19 into the top 37 languages spoken in Washington state. These top languages are spoken by at least 5% of the state population or 1,000 people based on 2016 Office of Financial Management (OFM) data. The plan also provides guidance for state agencies to establish telephonic interpretation services which allows real-time translation over the phone.

“A number of communities are disproportionately impacted by this pandemic. One way we can reduce that injustice is by meeting our obligation to communicate in ways that are accessible and culturally and linguistically relevant,” said Washington State Secretary of Health John Wiesman.

The state Department of Health in coordination with the state’s JIC has made COVID-19 health information available in at least 26 languages and has produced an American Sign Language COVID-19 video series.

For those with questions about COVID-19, the state has also established a hotline at 1-800-525-0127. For interpretative services, press # when they answer and say your language. The hotline is open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.