TACOMA, Washington. On Monday, the state will review the criteria and announce which provinces will return from phase 3 to phase 2.
To stay in phase 3, larger provinces must have less than 200 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over a two-week period. In the case of hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients, they should have less than five new hospitalizations per 100,000 inhabitants within a period of seven days. If a country does not meet one of the criteria, its phase will be rolled back.
Several western Washington provinces are already higher than that benchmark. In western Washington, Pierce, Cowlitz and Kittitas are on the threshold, according to state data.
According to state numbers, Pierce County stands at 238 per 100,000 residents, but the Tacoma-Pierce County Department of Health proposes it at 195.
KIRO 7 asked why the numbers do not match.
“The state defines their criteria, cases per 100,000 as confirmed and probable cases, and that does not include a six-day delay,” said Cindan Gizzi, deputy director of the Tacoma Pierce County Department of Health. ‘It’s an open direct data set, and things often change from place of residence. We will find out in the investigation for a few days that someone is a resident of another country, so we will re-assign the case to the country. ‘
If rates in Pierce County rise, it looks like both sets of data are likely to return to the province after Phase 2.
The governor will announce which provinces will roll back on Monday, and the change will take place on Friday.
It will take another three weeks before the state re-evaluates where the provinces stand. Gizzi wants to see it happen sooner.
“We would like the state of Pierce County to reevaluate every two weeks, two weeks, so if we have to go back to phase 2 again, we can quickly return to phase 3 when we meet the criteria,” Gizzi said.
Public Health Seattle & King County reported 183 cases per 100,000 residents, but the state reported it at 164. Data from the Snohomish County Department of Health indicated that there were 121 new cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 residents, while the state calls it at 118.
With the increase in COVID-19 cases, it is possible that the provinces could also be rolled back.