Washington’s COVID-19 cases down across all age groups

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The Washington state Department of Health says COVID-19 cases are down across all age groups, including school-age children.

The Seattle Times reports the encouraging trend, revealed Wednesday, comes several weeks after the state passed a peak of infection driven by the delta variant, which health and hospital officials have said brought the highest numbers of infections and hospitalizations yet.

As of Oct. 3rd, the state’s seven-day case rate was 234 infections per 100,000 people. According to Department of Health’s coronavirus data dashboard, the current rate is similar to early January and down from a peak in early September of over 300 infections per 100,000 people.

Infection rates remain higher in Central and Eastern Washington.

Statewide, hospitalizations have also been decreasing for the past several weeks. At the beginning of October, epidemiologists recorded a seven-day rate of 11 hospitalizations per 100,000 people — close to where the state was at the peak of last winter’s surge.

Vaccination rates continue to trend upward, as the state’s Oct. 18th immunization mandate deadline approaches. More than 77% of the state’s eligible population has received at least their first vaccine dose, and as of Sunday, 205,000 Washingtonians have gotten Pfizer booster shots. (AP)

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