VP Mike Pence: Washington setting ‘great example’ for how to respond to coronavirus

Vice President Mike Pence traveled to Washington state on Thursday, saying the risk of contracting the coronavirus virus to Americans remains low.

“My message to the state of Washington is simply this. We’re with you. We’re here to help and we’re going to stay with you every step of the way until the state of Washington and America sees our way through the coronavirus,” Pence said at a press conference at Camp Murray with Gov. Jay Inslee.

Pence said the federal government has raised the standards on guidelines for preventing the spread of infectious disease at U.S. nursing homes. He said all 8,000 inspectors at the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will focus on whether nursing homes are complying with those standards.

“We want to make ensure that our seniors in our nursing homes are as safe as possible from the spread of the coronavirus,” said Pence, who was assigned by President Donald Trump to oversee the national response to the outbreak.

The federal government is working with Washington officials to investigate the outbreak at a King County nursing home, Life Care Center of Kirkland.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Washington state increased to 70 on Thursday, according to the state Department of Health — nearly a third of the 230 cases identified in the United States. There are 51 cases in King County, 18 in Snohomish County, and one in Grant County, said state Secretary of Health John Wiesman.

The state death toll increased to 11 Thursday, with an additional death reported in King County.

Coronavirus is spread through contact between people within 6 feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets.

Pence said within a week, the company that contracts with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will distribute test kits that will enable about 5.2 million people to be tested for the coronavirus.

“Still, just a beginning as our nation continues to hear of new cases every day, we want to make sure the testing is available broadly,” he said.

Pence said the vast majority of those have contracted coronavirus are recovered and doing well.

“The truth is that the risk of contracting coronavirus to the average Americans remains low...While there may be more cases detected in this state and around the country as we expand testing, most cases -- the experts tell me -- will be mild, with flu-like symptoms and the Americans involved will fully recover,” he said.

Pence said Washington state is on the “front lines of the coronavirus and the people of Washington state should be proud of their your state and local leadership, your health care leadership and first responders.”

Inslee said: “I think we have a good partnership between the state of Washington and the federal government. I’m very appreciative of [Pence] being here in such short order.”

The governor’s tenor was a marked contrast to his interaction with Pence last month.

After speaking with Pence on the phone Feb. 27, Inslee tweeted that he told Pence that “our work would be more successful if the Trump administration stuck to the science and told the truth.”

Asked if he still felt that way, Inslee said: “I think everybody agrees here that we want to have the best science. It is the unanimous opinion of everybody here today in that regard. I do believe that is very important going forward.”

Before the press briefing, Pence and Inslee met with the state’s congressional delegation and local government officials. Reporters were ushered in for a few minutes of the session.

Pence said Washington is setting a “great example” for states in how to handle the outbreak.

“The president wanted me to be here today to make it crystal clear that we are with you. We are here to help,” said Pence, a former Indiana governor who noted that he served in Congress with Inslee.

Among those attending the meeting with Pence and Inslee was Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier.

Pence noted that on Thursday the U.S. Senate, acting a day after the House of Representatives, approved $8.3 billion in support for the coronavirus outbreak.

“The resources are not simply resources for federal agencies, but rather there also is considerable investment there for states like Washington that are dealing with the coronavirus and also local health care providers,” Pence said.