Coronavirus daily news updates, September 4: What to know today about COVID-19 in the Seattle area, Washington state and the world – Seattle Times

State health officials confirmed Friday afternoon 479 new COVID-19 cases in Washington, bringing the state’s total count to 76,335.

The state also confirmed eight new deaths, meaning 1,953 Washingtonians have died from COVID-19. According to the State Department of Health’s (DOH) data dashboard, 2.6% of people diagnosed in Washington have died. The data is as of 11:59 p.m. Thursday.

The dashboard reports that 6,848 people have been hospitalized due to the novel coronavirus in Washington, where in January the first case of COVID-19 in the United States was confirmed in Snohomish County.

Statewide, 1,534,090 COVID-19 tests have been administered as of Thursday night.

In King County, the state’s most populous, state health officials have confirmed 20,022 diagnoses and 735 deaths.

Joe Biden said Friday that he’s been tested at least once for the COVID-19 virus and promised he will be tested regularly during his general election campaign against President Donald Trump.

The Democratic presidential nominee told reporters of his testing protocol during a wide-ranging news conference in which he blasted Trump.

Read the story here.

State Department officials say now is a good time to renew an expired passport or apply for a new one, though dozens of countries still do not admit most American tourists because of coronavirus fears.

A large backlog of passport applications that was waiting to be processed when the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which also handles visas, went into lockdown in mid-March has been tackled.

Passport processors are now chipping away at applications that have arrived since then.

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Americans headed into Labor Day weekend — the unofficial end to the Lost Summer of 2020 — amid warnings from public health experts that backyard parties, crowded bars and other gatherings could cause the coronavirus to come surging back.

“I look upon the Labor Day weekend really as a critical point,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease expert. “Are we going to go in the right direction and continue the momentum downward, or are we going to have to step back a bit as we start another surge?”

The rise in infections, deaths and hospitalizations over the summer was blamed in part on Americans behaving heedlessly over Memorial Day and July Fourth.

More beaches will be open on Labor Day than on Memorial Day, but Fauci said that is not cause in itself for concern, as long as people keep their distance.

“I would rather see someone on a beach, being physically separated enough, than someone crowded in an indoor bar,” he said.

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The head of the World Health Organization said the U.N. health agency will not recommend any COVID-19 vaccine before it is proved safe and effective, even as Russia and China have started using their experimental vaccines before large studies have finished and other countries have proposed streamlining authorization procedures.

At a press briefing on Friday, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said vaccines have been used successfully for decades, and credited them with eradicating smallpox and bringing polio to the brink of being eliminated.

“I would like to assure the public that WHO will not endorse a vaccine that’s not effective and safe,” Tedros said.

He said newly developed Ebola vaccines helped end the recent Ebola outbreak in Congo and urged people opposed to vaccination to do their own research.

Read the story here.

The number of people confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus in India rose by another 80,000 and is near Brazil’s total, the second-highest in the world.

The 83,341 cases added in the past 24 hours pushed India’s total past 3.9 million, according to the Health Ministry. Brazil has confirmed more than 4 million infections while the U.S. has more 6.1 million people infected, according to Johns Hopkins University.

India’s Health Ministry on Friday also reported 1,096 deaths in the past 24 hours, taking total fatalities up to 68,472.

In a country of 1.4 billion people, only those places most affected by the virus remain under lockdown. 

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Russian scientists have belatedly published first results from early trials into the experimental Sputnik V vaccine, which received government approval last month but drew considerable criticism from experts, as the shots had only been tested on several dozen people before being more widely administered.

In a report published in the journal Lancet on Friday, developers of the vaccine said it appeared to be safe and to prompt an antibody response in all 40 people tested in the second phase of the study within three weeks. However, the authors noted that participants were only followed for 42 days, the study sample was small and there was no placebo or control vaccine used.

International experts remained cautious over the vaccine’s effectiveness and safety. Nevertheless, its Russian developers made some bold assertions, claiming the vaccine’s protection will remain for two years.

Read the story here.

“Mulan” belongs in theaters, but don’t wait. Disney’s new movie shows great strength, beauty and action even on a small screen, our critic writes.

Stock your bookshelf with four Seattle-based crime fiction titles.

Missing the Washington State Fair? It’s a no-go this year, but consider picking up fair food to go and setting up backyard fair fun for your kids with games, exhibits and more.

More than 100 Washington high-school athletes rallied at the state Capitol in Olympia last night. As they called on the governor to reinstate a fall sports season, some pointed out the high stakes for their collegiate future and family finances.

The pleas were heartfelt and heartbreaking, but playing fall sports doesn’t align with COVID-19 realities, columnist Larry Stone writes.

FAQ Friday: Can you catch the virus through a building’s ventilation system? Do we still need to worry about surfaces? We’re breaking down what’s known about the risks as businesses scramble to deal with fears about the air in their buildings.

A COVID-19 outbreak that spread through a Bremerton hospital might be traceable to certain medical procedures, according to a state report that also says staffers were using personal protective equipment longer than recommended.

A vaccine by Election Day? That’s “extremely unlikely but not impossible,” the White House’s chief adviser on vaccines says, running counter to the optimism you might have heard.

Is your hand sanitizer safe and effective? An infectious-disease expert describes what to look for. Certainly stay away from the ones on the FDA’s list of unsafe sanitizers.

UW’s Huskies might play football in 2020, after all. The Pac-12 has a “groundbreaking” deal to test athletes every day for COVID-19. Here’s how it would work. But it wouldn’t happen right away, which has us thinking about the things we’ll miss the most about fall football — like that view from Husky Stadium on a brilliant day.

“A godsend”: As Seattle business owners talk about how aid from the city gave them a fighting chance after the pandemic hit, their experiences seem to suggest many businesses will need additional help.

COVID-19 has hit Gotham: Filming of Warner Bros.’ much-anticipated “The Batman” is shut down after its star reportedly tested positive.