Coronavirus: U.S. death toll reaches 11, including first fatality outside Washington state

A housekeeping worker wears a mask as she cleans a room, Wednesday, March 4, 2020, at an Econo Lodge motel in Kent, Wash. King County Executive Dow Constantine said Wednesday that the county had purchased the 85-bed motel south of Seattle to house patients for recovery and isolation due to the coronavirus. (Ted S. Warren/AP)

The death toll of the novel coronavirus reached 11 in the United States on Wednesday as the epidemic spread, resulting in the first fatality outside of Washington state, that of a 71-year-old in northern California.

As of Wednesday evening, health officials had reported at least 153 cases of the virus across the country, including 45 people who had been on the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan. Most domestic deaths so far have been linked to a nursing home near Seattle.

While no additional states reported patients on Wednesday, both New York and California experienced serious upticks in the spread of the virus. Health officials confirmed nine more cases in New York and six in Los Angeles County, which has also declared a local health emergency.

Elsewhere in California, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) announced a state of emergency while asking that another cruise ship be held off its coast. The vessel had recently carried several coronavirus patients, including the 71-year-old who died, and Newsom said he wanted passengers and crew members to undergo testing first.
Pence announces plan to make coronavirus test more available
During a press event at the White House on March 4, Vice President Pence detailed a plan to increase the availability of the coronavirus test. (The Washington Post)

Meanwhile, hospitals and public health labs are bracing for the impact of the growing outbreak.

The Washington Post