Submitted by Lewis County Public Health & Social Services
Lewis County Public Health & Social Services (LCPHSS) announced today that three more county residents – all in their 50s and 60s – have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total of confirmed cases to 10. Contact investigations have begun to identify others who may have been exposed to these additional persons.
LCPHSS only releases limited information about persons who have tested positive for COVID-19 because it is not authorized to release more under state and federal law. Information about the number of individuals testing positive for any particular disease is limited to general, non-identifiable terms usually consisting of the number of infected and the state, or in this case the county, in which the person resides. More complete information may only be released with the affected person’s consent.
“More people are being tested and test results are being reported back to us, but it’s still too early to discern meaningful trends,” LCPHSS Deputy Director John Abplanalp said.
Abplanalp also reports that because of limited testing, fewer than 500 of the county’s 79,000 residents have been tested. “Having so few tests done really hinders our efforts to predict where we are as a county. Are we increasing, decreasing, or holding steady? We just don’t know yet.”
The Washington Governor’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy Order that requires everyone to stay home remains in effect and continues to be the best way to prevent catching the disease and stopping its spread.
People can stay informed by following the Lewis County COVID-19 web page at https://lewiscountywa.gov/covid19/, @LCPHSS on Twitter, or www.facebook.com/lcphss.
In addition, DOH has a call center to answer questions from the public. If you have questions about what is happening in Washington, how the virus is spread, and what to do if you have symptoms, call 1-800-525-0127 and press #.
