JAY INSLEE

Jake Dickert has been introduced as the new head football coach at Washington State University and vows to “bring the Pac-12 championship back here to Pullman, Washington.”.

Washington state's Republican secretary of state is preparing to move across the country to take a key election security position within the Biden Administration.

People in the small city of Sumas, Washington, are assessing damage from flooding that hit an estimated three quarters of homes in the community near the Canadian border.

As parts of western Washington began drying out after an atmospheric river dumped days of rain, waters in some areas continued rising, more people were urged to evacuate and crews worked to restore power and reopen roads.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee declared a severe weather state of emergency for 14 counties in the western part of the state. Oregon and British Columbia also saw extreme flooding and high winds.

Days of heavy rainfall and high winds Monday coming from a powerful atmospheric river in Washington caused extensive flooding and mudslides that forced evacuations, closed schools and closed Interstate 5 south of Bellingham.

U.S. governors are taking a seat at the table as international leaders gather in Scotland at a critical moment for global efforts to reduce fossil fuel emissions and slow the planet's temperature rise.

Ordinary Americans and the nation's airlines are combining to donate miles and cash to help Afghan refugees resettle in the United States.

A Republican secretary of state who challenged former President Donald Trump’s false claims of election fraud in 2020 will lead the Biden administration’s effort to protect future elections.

Washington State has fired football coach Nick Rolovich and four of his assistants for refusing a state mandate that all employees get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Opponents of a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers in Maine have filed an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court after being dealt another legal defeat.

The Biden’s administration’s mandate that employers with 100 or more workers require coronavirus vaccinations or institute weekly virus testing has moved one step closer to enforcement.

Pakistan’s planning minister says the government will begin a drive to vaccinate children aged 12 or above to protect them from coronavirus.

Officials in the northeast China city of Harbin say national level health officials have been sent to the city to deal with what may be a coronavirus outbreak.

Religious objections were once used only sparingly around the country to get exempted from various required vaccines.

Washington hospital officials say the state is facing its own COVID-19 crisis and has little capacity to help Idaho deal with a surge of cases driven by unvaccinated people.

Alaska Gov_ Mike Dunleavy said President Joe Biden’s effort to require millions of U_S_ workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 is “ill conceived, divisive, and un-American.”.

Israel says it will soon reopen its gates to foreign tour groups -- even as it battles one of the world’s highest rates of coronavirus infections.

A growing number of communities are moving to require teachers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as part of aggressive campaigns to ward off the delta variant, which has infected hundreds of thousands of children in the United States.

Disastrous environmental events are converging like never before.

Washington State coach Nick Rolovich says he intends to follow a new state mandate requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for all those working at the state’s colleges and universities, including coaches.

The mandate, effective Oct. 18, applies to all K-12 teachers and staff in the state. The news comes as states around the country grapple with rising cases and the return of in-person schooling.

South Korea’s daily increase in coronavirus infections has exceeded 2,000 for the first time since the start of the pandemic, continuing an alarming spread despite the enforcement of strict virus restrictions in large population centers.

Dozens of large fires are burning out West and the smoke has spread as far as the East Coast.

President Joe Biden is sounding the alarm about the need for more resources to fight a series of wildfires in Western states.

Washington state is embarking on a massive experiment in police reform and accountability following the racial justice protests that erupted after George Floyd’s murder last year, with nearly a dozen laws that took effect Sunday.

Washington state has become the second state in the Pacific Northwest in as many days to announce emergency rules that provide farmworkers and others who work outdoors more protection from hot weather.

The grim toll of the historic heat wave in the Pacific Northwest has become more apparent as authorities in Canada, Washington state and Oregon say they're investigating hundreds of deaths likely caused by extreme temperatures.

Money is on the way to help save the only grocery store in an isolated Washington state community that's been especially strained by the pandemic-related closure of the U.S.-Canada border. About 1,300 people live on Point Roberts, on the tip of a peninsula south of Vancouver, British Columbia, that juts into U.S. territory. Before the pandemic residents often traveled into Canada to shop, work or drive the 25 miles (40 km) through southern British Columbia to reach the U.S. mainland.

As the Pacific Northwest swelters in an unprecedented heat wave, an electrical utility in the Washington state city of Spokane has announced that more rolling blackouts have started that will cut off electricity and air conditioning to some customers.

The U.S. Supreme Court won't allow Wyoming and Montana to sue Washington state for denying a key permit to build a coal export dock.

Intense.

The Pacific Northwest sweltered Friday as a historic heat wave hit Washington and Oregon, with temperatures in many areas expected to top out 25 to 30 degrees above normal in the coming days.

Uganda is tightening its lockdown measures to try and stem a surge in coronavirus infections in the East African country that is seeing an array of variants.

Washington’s new “joints for jabs” vaccination incentive program is off to a rough start.

Mexican officials say they will use 1 million U.S. doses of the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine to inoculate people along the border.

Arizona’s state-run COVID-19 vaccination sites, which were touted as a national model, will be shutting down later this month.

After nearly four years of litigation and pandemic-related delays, a trial is underway to determine whether the GEO Group must pay minimum wage to detainees who perform cooking, cleaning and other tasks at its Northwest immigration detention center in Washington state.

Marcus Whitman has been an iconic figure from early Pacific Northwest history for generations.

Three Washington state police officers have pleaded not guilty to charges in the restraint death of a Black man who repeatedly told them he couldn't breathe.

The Environmental Protection Agency is restoring a rule that grants states and Native American tribes authority to block pipelines and other energy projects that can pollute rivers, streams and other waterways.

At least 17 states have prohibited or severely limited the use of chokeholds and neck restraints by police officers in the year since George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis after being pinned under an officer's knee.

Even as the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention moved earlier this month to ease indoor mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, some blue states like Oregon and Washington are still holding on to certain longtime coronavirus restrictions.

Many Americans are still making sense of new CDC guidance that vaccinated people no longer have to wear masks in most indoor settings.

The legislation was prompted by public outrage following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Black people at the hands of police.

Washington state's Democratic governor, Jay Inslee, signed 12 bills into law Tuesday on everything from the tactics officers use in the field, to circumstances under which officers can be decertified.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday signed one of the nation’s most ambitious packages of police accountability legislation, prompted by last year’s outcry for racial justice following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Black people at the hands of police. The dozen bills Inslee signed include outright bans on police use of chokeholds, neck restraints and no-knock warrants such as the one that helped lead to Taylor's killing in Louisville, Kentucky.

A number of states have embraced new federal guidelines that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations.

New Mexico has adopted guidance on facemasks from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that says fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks indoors or outside in most cases.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a measure overhauling the state’s approach to drug possession, after the Washington Supreme Court struck down its previous law as unconstitutional.

According to data released from the state Department of Public Health, Of the more than 1.4 million Connecticut residents who are now fully vaccinated, 242 later became infected with COVID-19.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is receiving criticism from lawmakers in his own party over his shifting economic reopening plan, with a group of Democrats from the state’s second most populous county threatening the possibility of a special legislative session.

Australia's prime minister is resisting mounting pressure to lift a temporary ban on flights from India, saying any early resumption of arrivals from that pandemic hot spot would erode Australia’s quarantine capability.

Kamala Harris will lead the US National Space Council to help generate national space policies for the Biden administration, adding yet another item to the Vice President's brief. The Space Council was resurrected by the Trump administration in 2017 and led under Ms Harris' predecessor Mike Pence. The Biden administration's decision to keep the Council in operation was confirmed with Ms Harris' appointment on Saturday. However, a senior official told reporters that the Vice President intends "to put her own personal stamp" on the body and focus on a wide variety of space policies. While national security will continue to be a key issue for the Council, Ms Harris also intends to also focus on the development of sustainable commercial spaceflight, climate change and efforts for science, engineering and maths education, the official said. "In other words, the council's basic objectives: national security, basic science, technological development, contributions to US economic growth and the commercial sector will all be maintained," one official said. In a tweet confirming the new role, the Vice President said: "As I've said before: In America, when we shoot for the moon, we plant our flag on it. I am honoured to lead our National Space Council."

Australian residents and citizens who have been in India within 14 days of the date they plan to return home will be banned from entering Australia as of Monday and those who disobey will face fines and jail, government officials said. The temporary emergency determination, issued late on Friday, is the first time Australia has made it a criminal offence for its citizens to return home. The move is part of strict measures to stop travellers to Australia from the world's second most populous nation as it contends with a surge in Covid-19 cases and deaths. The restrictions come into effect from May 3 and breaching the ban risks civil penalties and up to five years imprisonment, Health Minister Greg Hunt said in a statement. "The government does not make these decisions lightly," Mr Hunt said." However, it is critical the integrity of the Australian public health and quarantine systems is protected and the number of Covid-19 cases in quarantine facilities is reduced to a manageable level." The government will reconsider the restrictions on May 15. India's coronavirus death toll passed 200,000 this week, and cases are nearing 19 million as virulent new strains have combined with "super-spreader" events such as political rallies and religious festivals.

Attorneys for Scott Peterson claim they have new evidence that could get his conviction for the death of his pregnant wife and unborn child overturned in the form of new witnesses and suspects they believe are the true killers.

Federal agents served a search warrant at a boutique resort in Homer, Alaska, saying they were looking for a laptop stolen from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office during the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, one of the Homer Inn and Spa owners said. Agents on Wednesday confiscated laptop computers and a cellphone, owner Marilyn Hueper said. A cellphone belonging to her husband, Paul Hueper, was also forensically audited by agents but not confiscated, she said.

Plans to distribute the first 300,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in Canada next week are on hold after Health Canada learned part of them were manufactured at a Maryland facility that messed up the ingredients in 15 million doses bound for the U.S. market.

The US government is investigating possible "energy attacks" perpetrated on home soil after White House and National Security Council officials complained of debilitating symptoms similar to ones reported by diplomats in Cuba, Russia and China. The Department of Defence and other federal agencies have launched a probe and briefed politicians after being notified of an incident near the White House, CNN reported. The mysterious episodes first took place in Cuba, in 2016, when diplomats and other embassy staff complained of ear popping, vertigo, pounding headaches and nausea, sometimes accompanied by an unidentified "piercing directional noise." The cause of the symptoms has not yet been established, although State Department officials have previously referred to a “sonic attack” and “directional phenomena”. The illness was dubbed "Havana syndrome" and prompted the US to more than halve its numbers at the mission in 2017. Similar events took place in Russia and China in 2017 and 2018.

Washington state is changing the way it allocates coronavirus vaccine as demand for the shots declines in some places.

When the coronavirus pandemic hit the Pacific Northwest states of Oregon and Washington, their governors quickly reacted with shutdowns.

President Joe Biden says the U.

Gov. Jay Inslee said Saturday that inoculations with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can begin in Washington state following a review by scientific experts in a western states work group.

Just over a year ago, a choir practice in Washington state sickened 53 people and killed two.

A Seattle-area hospital system has apologized after it offered COVID-19 vaccination appointments to big donors. The Seattle Times reports Overlake Medical Center & Clinics emailed about 110 donors last week who gave more than $10,000 to the hospital system, telling them that vaccine slots were available. The email gave the donors an access code to register for appointments "by invite" only. We need to give everybody a fair shot at the vaccine … We've got to maintain public credibility in the system. The hospital system says the vaccination slots were not offered exclusively to donors, but also to Overlake board members, some patients, volunteers, employees and retired health providers - some 4,000 people in all.

Andrew Cuomo Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images"Tax the rich" policies being weighed in some statehouses to cover Covid-era budget shortfalls may make more sense in the current economy. States may be better-suited by broadening sales taxes — to digital goods like streaming services, for example — instead of raising income taxes, Walczak added. Lawmakers in Arkansas, Mississippi, Montana and West Virginia have even called to cut income taxes this year. California lawmakers proposed hiking income taxes for millionaires, a move expected to raise more than $6 billion a year. In September, New Jersey enacted a measure to increase income taxes for residents with yearly income between $1 million and $5 million.

The Amazon headquarters sits virtually empty on March 10, 2020 in downtown Seattle, Washington. Amazon is opening a pop-up clinic in Seattle to administer Covid-19 vaccines. The one-day clinic will be set up on Sunday at Amazon's headquarters in downtown Seattle, the company announced Thursday at a news conference with Washington Governor Jay Inslee. Beyond the pop-up clinic, Carney said Amazon is working with Inslee and the state on its Covid-19 vaccine efforts. The clinic comes as Amazon has appealed to President Joe Biden and other officials for its front-line workers to get priority access to the Covid-19 vaccine.

Washington state Governor Jay Inslee said in a blog post this week it has enlisted Starbucks, Microsoft, Costco and other big companies to help with its vaccine rollout, with a goal of vaccinating 45,000 residents per day. "This is a massive effort, and as noble as any cause will be in 2021: Because this is the year we choose to get vaccinated, Washington," Inslee said in a press conference Monday. As of Wednesday, Washington had administered less than half of the doses it has received from the federal government so far. Starbucks is assigning workers from its operations services, labor and deployment, analytics and insights, and other departments to help design vaccination sites that are efficient and beneficial for patients, Starbucks said. "Basically, our role is figuring out how do we help these sites and the department of health as they set up vaccination sites.

A growing number of states that have struggled to speedily distribute the COVID-19 vaccine are enlisting the National Guard for help. In all, about 20 states are using their local National Guard troops for everything from leading the vaccination effort to distribution to giving people shots. That was also the reason more states appeared to be turning to the National Guard for help. Jessica Hill / APLast week, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson activated 45 National Guard troops. Back in the spring, when the coronavirus was spreading rapidly, the complex on the west side of Manhattan was repurposed by National Guard troops into a COVID-19 treatment facility.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said British Airways, Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic agreed to test travelers from the United Kingdom for COVID-19 before they board flights for New York. The quarantine is mandatory and although it's legally enforceable, Inslee said no one will be taken into custody over it. On Monday night, Cuomo called for a federal policy to try to keep the mutated strain from being brought to New York from other states, reports CBS New York. And this whole notion that any one state can protect itself was foolish from the beginning," Cuomo said. And for us to once again be incompetent as a federal government and take no action is just not a viable option for us in New York," Cuomo said.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee on Sunday announced the state would enforce new restrictions on businesses and social gatherings for the next month as it continued to combat a rising number of cases. Get Breaking News Delivered to Your InboxThe actions also follow grim milestones passed by Texas and California last week as the states each marked more than 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic. The restrictions announced by Inslee, a Democrat, temporarily rolls back all counties and places them under the same guidelines. As of Sunday, Johns Hopkins University's coronavirus tracker has reached 11 million after topping 10 million cases November 9 — with the most recent million coming in just six days. It took 300 days for the U.S. to hit the 11 million mark since the first case was diagnosed in Washington state on January 20.

6/28: Mike Pence, Gov. Jay Inslee, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Sen. Tim Scott, Sherrilyn Ifill This week on "Face the Nation", a record number of new coronavirus cases explodes in the U.S., while governors in multiple states hit pause on reopening and the White House downplays the dangerous spread.

With governors around the nation lifting stay-at-home orders implemented to slow the spread of coronavirus, many are now seeking new combatants: contact tracers. Andrew Cuomo said that about three dozen contact tracers would be needed for every 100,000 people in affected areas. New York state has remained a hotbed of the coronavirus outbreak, with 305,000 cases and more than 23,300 deaths. The states stay-at-home requirement is set to expire on May 15, but could be extended. In Indiana, officials announced a program this week that includes having 500 trained contact tracers in place in the weeks ahead.

A man walks along an empty street as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in New Orleans, Louisiana U.S., April 4, 2020. (Graphic: tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T)The coronavirus is truly vicious and effective at what the virus does, Cuomo told a daily briefing. However, a few churches were holding large gatherings on Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week in Christian churches. NO ARCHIVESAdams, the surgeon general, said governors who have not issued month-long stay-at-home orders should at least consider one for the upcoming week. Kate Lynn Blatt, 38, a property manager from rural Pottsville, Pennsylvania, said she was astounded that her states governor, Tom Wolf, waited until April 1 to issue a statewide stay-at-home order.

A man walks along an empty street as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in New Orleans, Louisiana U.S., April 4, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos BarriaNew York, the hardest-hit state, reported on Sunday that there were nearly 600 new deaths for a total of 4,159 deaths and 122,000 total cases. The coronavirus is truly vicious and effective at what the virus does, Cuomo told a daily briefing. And I want America to understand that.Places such as Pennsylvania, Colorado and Washington, D.C. are starting to see rising deaths. Louisiana has become a hot spot for the virus, on Saturday reporting a jump in deaths to 409 and more than 12,000 cases.

A man walks along an empty street as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in New Orleans, Louisiana U.S., April 4, 2020. This is going to be our Pearl Harbor moment, our 9/11 moment, only its not going to be localized, he said. And I want America to understand that.Places such as Pennsylvania, Colorado and Washington, D.C. are starting to see rising deaths. The White House coronavirus task force warned this is not the time to go to the grocery store or other public places. However, a few churches were holding large gatherings on Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week in Christian churches.

Facial recognition software can identify individuals in photos and videos based on a database of known subjects. Washingtons law requires government agencies to obtain a warrant to run facial recognition scans, except in case of emergency. Previously, several cities, including San Francisco and Oakland, have banned government use of facial recognition, and California is among states that have barred facial recognition from being used in tandem with police body cameras. Microsoft Corp, based in Redmond, Washington, sells facial recognition software and backed the new law. Microsoft has said bans go too far and that real-world usage is needed to determine how best to regulate facial recognition.

(Reuters) - The governor of Washington signed legislation on Tuesday approving $200 million in emergency funds intended to slow the spread of the coronavirus in one of the hardest-hit U.S. states. The measure was approved earlier this week by state lawmakers in Washington, which has over 900 confirmed cases and 48 deaths from the coronavirus. A long-term care facility in the Seattle suburb of Kirkland was the site of one of the nations first outbreaks. New York, Washington state and California have the most confirmed cases of the highly contagious respiratory illness. The Trump administration on Tuesday pressed Congress to pass a $1 trillion stimulus package to buttress a U.S. economy hit by coronavirus fears.

The new coronavirus that's rapidly spreading throughout the U.S. reached all 50 states and D.C. on Tuesday after West Virginia confirmed its first case and the U.S. death toll passed 100. The virus has now infected more than 5,809 people across the country and killed at least 100, NBC News reported. There were just 62 confirmed cases of the virus in the U.S. on March 1, according to the World Health Organization. More than half of all deaths in the U.S. occurred in Washington state, where the virus has killed 53 people. King County in Washington state has been hit particularly hard by the virus with 46 deaths reported in the county alone.

(Reuters) - The death toll in Washington state from coronavirus has surged by six to a total of 37, Governor Jay Inslee said on Friday as he issued new executive orders intended to reduce the spread of the respiratory illness. Washington, the hardest hit state in the outbreak of COVID-19, has confirmed 538 cases, Inslee said at an afternoon press conference at the statehouse in Olympia. The U.S. coronavirus death toll reached 46 on Friday. I dont take these decisions lightly, Im doing this for the health of all Washingtonians, the governor said. The bulk of the deaths from coronavirus in Washington state centered on a long-term care facility in the Seattle suburb of Kirkland.

(Reuters) - Washington states death toll from the coronavirus has surged by six to a total of 37, Governor Jay Inslee said on Friday. The state was extending its ban on gatherings of 250 people or more to across the state, and public and private schools will close as of Tuesday, Inslee told a news conference.

(Reuters) - Washington state Governor Jay Inslee on Thursday ordered schools to close in three Seattle-area counties to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus in a state battling the nations deadliest outbreak. The closure affects King, Pierce and Snohomish counties and all schools in the state may be ordered to close on Friday, Inslee told a news conference. Asked by a reporter about President Donald Trumps comments that he was considering travel restrictions to Washington, Inslee said he had not been consulted by the Trump administration about such a move and hoped it would not happen.

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Washington Governor Jay Inslee on Wednesday banned gatherings of over 250 people in the Seattle area, said he may soon close all schools and did not rule out eventual lockdowns to slow the spread of the United States deadliest coronavirus outbreak. Washington State Governor Jay Inslee and other regional leaders attend a news conference to announce measures to combat the spread of novel coronavirus disease, COVID-19, in Seattle, Washington, U.S., March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Karen DuceyThe ban targeted sports, concerts, worship services and other events in greater Seattles King, Snohomish and Pierce Counties. The move followed New York Governor Andrew Cuomos decision on Tuesday to close schools, houses of worship and large gatherings in part of New York City suburb New Rochelle to counter an outbreak. Schools should be prepared to close for weeks or months, said Jeffrey Duchin, health officer for Seattle and King County.

Anthony Fauci, head of infectious diseases at the National Institutes of Health, told a congressional hearing that the outbreak would only get worse in the United States. REUTERS/Brian SnyderThe number of U.S. coronavirus cases has risen steadily and has affected almost three-quarters of U.S. states. DISRUPTIONS TO DAILY LIFEDaily life in the United States has been increasingly disrupted, with concerts and conferences canceled and universities telling students to stay home and take classes online. Public gatherings have been suspended in a coronavirus hot zone in New Rochelle, a New York City suburb. The State Department has decided to suspend non-essential travel for its staff because of coronavirus, three sources familiar with the matter said.

Washington State Governor Jay Inslee (C) addresses the press during a visit by Vice President Mike Pence to discuss concerns over the coronavirus. Public officials on Wednesday banned large gatherings in San Francisco and the Seattle area as cities seek to curb the spread of the new flu-like coronavirus that's infected more than 121,000 people across the world since December. Moments after Inslee's announcement, San Francisco health officials announced they were prohibiting public and private events of 1,000 or more to slow the spread of the new coronavirus there. "We know that this order is disruptive, but it is an important step to support public health," San Francisco Mayor London Breed said in a statement. The San Francisco ban is for two weeks, the mayor's office said in a statement, adding that the city's public health officer can extend it.

Inslee said that most schools in Washington would remain open for now, but administrators should make immediate contingency plans for potential closures. Soon after he spoke, however, administrators announced that all Seattle public schools would close on Thursday for a minimum of two weeks to disrupt infection. On Wednesday, the county health agency reported four more people had died from the disease. Fewer passengers are riding ferries as authorities try to slow the spread of coronavirus by encouraging people to work from home. But Seattle Public Schools administrators said in a statement Wednesday that they needed to move swiftly.

OLYMPIA, Wash. (Reuters) - Washington Governor Jay Inslee on Tuesday said he was considering mandatory measures to prevent an increase in coronavirus cases that could reach 64,000 in the state within eight weeks unless real action was taken. REUTERS/David Ryder/File PhotoInslee said epidemiologists warned there were likely as many as 500 to 2,000 coronavirus cases in Washington, and given the rate of spread of the highly contagious respiratory illness, the number could double every five to eight days. Washington state cases jumped by 105 to 267 cases on Tuesday with 24 deaths, nearly all of them in the greater-Seattle area. Most schools have stayed open in the Seattle area, drawing criticism as the area reported nearly all coronavirus deaths in the United States. After a delay, testing of Life Care Center staff has begun in earnest, spokesman Tim Killian said on Tuesday.

Passengers arrive on an international flight at the SeattleTacoma International Airport (also known as Sea-Tac Airport) on March 8, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. Karen Ducey | Getty ImagesWashington state COVID-19 cases could reach 64,000 by May if health officials and the public aren't able to contain the outbreak now, Gov. If there are 1,000 people infected today, in seven or eight weeks, there could be 64,000 people infected in the state of Washington," he said. Inslee declared a state of emergency last month after the state reported its first death from the virus a man in his 50s from King County with underlying health conditions. The flu-like virus appears to be particularly severe for the elderly and those with underlying health conditions, Inslee noted on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Washington State is considering whether mandatory measures may be needed to curb social gatherings and contain the spread of coronavirus in the hard-hit state, Governor Jay Inslee said on Sunday. We certainly are contemplating requirements for what we call social distancing, Inslee said on CBS Face the Nation.We are contemplating some next steps, particularly to protect our vulnerable populations, and our nursing homes and the like, and we are looking to determine whether mandatory measures are required, he added. He said the public had responded well with voluntary measures so far, but that more may need to be done. Thats working, but we may have to go to the next step.

Men wear face mask as they ride on the subway on March 8, 2020 in New York City. Oregon joined a growing number states to declare emergencies to contain the virus after the state's confirmed cases doubled to 14. Associated Press4:13 pm: New York City could soon have over 100 cases, mayor saysNew York City could have 100 or more coronavirus cases in coming weeks, up from 13 now, Mayor Bill de Blasio said. Kate Brown declared a 60-day state of emergency as COVID-19 cases in the state doubled to 14. Reuters1:12 pm: Cases in France rise to 1,126French health officials said cases have risen to 1,126 across the country, including 19 deaths.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The coronavirus outbreak radiated across the United States on Thursday, surfacing in at least four new states and San Francisco as Congress quickly approved more than $8 billion to fight the outbreak. This is a critical moment in the growing outbreak of COVID-19 in King County, the county said in a statement. A medic prepares a stretcher to transfer a patient into an ambulance at the Life Care Center of Kirkland, the long-term care facility linked to several confirmed coronavirus cases in the state, in Kirkland, Washington, U.S. March 5, 2020. Texas and Maryland each confirmed three coronavirus cases, and Tennessee and Colorado each reported one, bringing the number of affected states to 17. Asked if the coronavirus outbreak has hurt the economy, Trump said at a townhall in Scranton, Pennsylvania: It certainly might have an impact.

CAMP MURRAY, Wash. (Reuters) - Vice President Mike Pence traveled to the state of Washington on Thursday to pledge federal support to one of the areas hardest hit by the coronavirus and defended President Donald Trumps response amid tension with the states governor over science. Governor Jay Inslee, a Democrat, last week tweeted sharp criticism at Pence and the Trump administration over its handling of the virus in the United States. I just received a call from @VP Mike Pence, thanking Washington state for our efforts to combat the coronavirus, Inslee posted on Twitter. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the government's coronavirus task force, addresses the news at 3M's company headquarters in Maplewood, Minnesota, U.S. March 5, 2020. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the government's coronavirus task force, addresses the news alongside 3M CEO Mike Roman and Minnesota governor Tim Walz (not pictured) at the company's headquarters in Maplewood, Minnesota, U.S. March 5, 2020.

The Washington State Department of Health confirmed the news on Saturday, saying a man from Kings County in Washington died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. The man was in his 50s and had underlying health issues, officials said during a press conference on Saturday afternoon. Both of the cases are associated with Life Care Center of Kirkland, a long-term care nursing facility in Kirkland, Washington. The patient who died of coronavirus was a patient at Evergreen Hospital in Kirkland, where the 70-year-old patient is also hospitalized. "This is a time to take common-sense, proactive measures to ensure the health and safety of those who live in Washington state," he said.

A Washington state man has become the first person in the U.S. to die from the coronavirus, state and federal public health officials confirmed Saturday. In Seattle, Duchin said public health officials learned that the man who died had been diagnosed with the coronavirus after he was reported as a presumptive positive by Washingtons Public Health Laboratories. Riedo says its likely that there are more coronavirus cases in the Seattle area. Sacramento County health officials said dozens of people might be quarantined at home as a result. Neither the Oregon patient nor the Washington high school student had a recent history of international travel or contact with another coronavirus patient, officials said.

A Seattle man in his 50s with underlying health conditions but no known exposure to a coronavirus patient has died, marking the first reported death from COVID-19 in the United States, Washington state health officials said Saturday. More than 50 people in a Seattle-area nursing facility were reported sick and being tested for the virus. West Coast health officials are concerned that a growing number of people are being infected despite not having traveled in areas with outbreaks or being exposed to anyone who has. A healthcare worker and a resident of the facility that cares for elderly, vulnerable patients in Kirkland, Wash., have been hospitalized with the new coronavirus, health officials said. In Oregon, health officials were dealing with the states likely first case of coronavirus, which was announced Friday.

Running for president can be thrilling but also very lonely," Warren told NBC News in a recent interview. Read more from NBC:Elizabeth Warren's 'unity' pitch clashes with her 'fighter' messageA cold call from someone she never met changed Elizabeth Warren's life. On the campaign trail, Warren goes out of her way to mention incorporating the signature policy issues of "Cory" (Booker) or "Julin" (Castro). "I feel like I'm living in a movie that is running at high speed with everything coming by so quickly," Warren said. But there's not much time nor trust on the campaign trail to sit down and commiserate over a beer with someone you're trying to defeat.

(Reuters) - A Washington state man who recently traveled to China has been diagnosed with the coronavirus, becoming the first confirmed U.S. case of the newly identified illness that has killed six people in China and sickened some 300 others across Asia. Under that alert level, the CDC recommends travelers to Wuhan should avoid contact with sick people, animals or animal markets. REUTERS/Lindsey WassonBesides the United States, cases outside of China have been reported in South Korea, Thailand and Japan. The U.S. traveler from Washington state had returned on Jan. 15, arriving at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, which is not on the U.S. list for enhanced screening. The patient sought care at a medical facility in Everett, Washington, and was treated for the illness.

(Reuters) - The state of Washington on Thursday proposed bans on the sale of assault weapons and high capacity magazines, part of a package of gun laws meant to address a rising wave of U.S. mass shootings. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File PhotoIf successful, Washington would become the seventh U.S. state to ban assault weapons, which it defines as semi-automatic rifles with at least one military feature, and the ninth to limit the capacity of ammunition magazines. By limiting magazine capacity and banning assault weapons, we can work toward a day where no one in Washington state loses a friend or family members to senseless gun violence, Inslee said. In 1994, Congress enacted a federal assault weapons ban, limiting these types of magazines, but it expired a decade later. Most of the candidates for the Democratic nomination have said they would support renewing the federal ban on assault weapons and some have called for buyback programs.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, as well as three other Democratic Presidential hopefuls Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Gov. Warren's tax, if implemented in 2021, would raise $2.3 trillion to $2.7 trillion in additional revenue over 10 years, well below the $3.75 trillion her campaign estimates, according to the study viewed by CNBC. In other words, the study projects the proposed wealth tax will raise $1 trillion to $1.4 trillion less than the Warren campaign advertises. In an email to CNBC, the Warren campaign staunchly defended the wealth tax and argued that the Wharton study relies on weak assumptions. The Wharton report also said that the proposed tax would result in secondary economic impacts for families not directly subject to the duty.

The states gray wolf population has gradually recovered to at least 126 since 2008, when the first two packs since the 1930s established dens. A gray wolf wearing a tracking collar walks north of the central Washington town of Cle Elum in June. Thats the minimum number of deaths or injuries required within 10 months for them to begin killing wolves until the livestock attacks cease. Now, gray wolves howl in the night across broad swaths of eastern Washington, thrilling naturalists and spooking ranchers. Swannack, who lost a dog and four sheep to gray wolves in 2014, feels that Gov.