Washington State will be expanding its novel coronavirus testing strategy, Gov. Jay Inslee announced in a June 4 press conference.
Joined by state Health Secretary John Wiesman, Inslee said that the number of available test kits has increased substantially, and that in an effort to keep ahead of the novel coronavirus and associated disease, COVID-19, the state is encouraging everyone who has even mild symptoms or suspected contact with an infected person get tested. Inslee said that this is particularly important, as people head back to workplaces and other congregate settings.
Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee unveiled the state’s novel coronavirus contact tracing plan in a press conference on May 12.
The plan is meant to “box in the virus,” Inslee said, and work in tandem with the state’s phased reopening plan. The contact tracing plan will involve almost 1,400 contact tracing team members, including 351 members of the Washington State National Guard and a combination of more than 600 local and state health department officials. The effort will not directly involve law enforcement, and the National Guard will not have law enforcement capabilities.
The rate of novel coronavirus infections in Washington State has risen once again, Gov. Jay Inslee said in a press conference on May 8.
Pointing to models from the Institute for Disease Modeling that show data collected up to April 19, Inslee said that though the rate of infection has dropped significantly since the initial outbreak, the rate of infection has risen from below one in both Eastern and Western Washington to about one in Western Washington and just above one in Eastern Washington. This means that one person is infecting one other person in Western Washington, and more than one other person in Eastern Washington. This is a notable increase for Western Washington, which had previously dropped to an infection rate of just over 0.5 in early April.
Washington State’s stay-home order will now remain in place until May 31, in order to continue to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, as the state works in four phases to return to relative normalcy.
The state has been under a stay-home order since late March. Though the order was supposed to be lifted on May 4, Gov. Jay Inslee said in a press conference on May 1 that though there has been some “good news,” regarding the slowed spread of the virus, the data simply doesn’t support fully opening up the state yet. As of April 30, there have been 14,327 confirmed cases and 814 deaths.
Washingtonians will remain under a stay-home order past the original stop date of May 4, Gov. Jay Inslee announced in a press conference on April 30.
Joined by Vice Admiral Dr. Raquel Bono, director of Washington state COVID-19 health care response, as well as state health officer Kathy Lofy, and the Washington State Emergency Operations Center deputy intelligence section chief Katherine Guest, Inslee said that the decision to keep Washingtonians under a stay-home order was not an easy one, but was necessary, based on current modeling data. The stay-home order is meant to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Washingtonians who were previously unable to claim unemployment may now find themselves eligible for benefits.
At a press conference on April 16, Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee and Washington Employment Security Department Commissioner Suzi LeVine announced an expansion to the state’s unemployment benefits program by implementing certain parts of the federal CARES Act, a response to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee announced at an April 6 press conference with State Superintendent Chris Reykdal that he is extending school closures through the end of this school year in June, as the number of cases of novel coronavirus in the state begins to peak.
Though he didn’t formally commit to an extension of the current emergency stay-home order or the current eviction moratorium, Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee said in a televised press conference on April 1 that an extension on both remains likely. He also said the state’s manufacturers need to step up in the fight against the virus.
“We know this month could be decisive in this effort, both in terms of our nation’s response and our state’s response against COVID-19. This is, perhaps, the decisive moment that we are facing,” Inslee said.
