Whatcom County sees 7 new COVID-related hospitalizations reported Tuesday

On the day after PeaceHealth restricted visitor access at St. Joseph hospital in Bellingham due to escalating COVID-19 numbers in the community, Whatcom County saw seven COVID-related hospitalizations added to its pandemic total.

The Washington State Department of Health’s COVID-19 Data Dashboard on Tuesday, Aug. 10, reported Whatcom County has had 526 COVID-related hospitalizations during the pandemic.

The county had 17 hospitalizations in the past week, according to the Bellingham Herald’s analysis of the state’s epidemiological data, though those numbers could change once the state finalizes that data in about a week and a half. The 17 hospitalizations work out to approximately 7.5 per 100,000 residents over the past week.

St. Joseph hospital reported that it was treating 26 COVID patients on Wednesday, up five from Monday and only five short of the pandemic high of 31, last seen on June 8.