Governor to end state of emergency

Governor Jay Inslee will lift Washington’s state of emergency for Covid-19 by the end of October, ending more than two and a half years of unprecedented executive powers used to tamp down the
pandemic.

Inslee’s announcement in a September 8 news conference comes as the pandemic – along with public appetite for government controls to curb the virus – have waned, with more people becoming vaccinated or getting immunity after recovering.

More than 14,000 Washingtonians have died of Covid-19, according to state health data, which is among the lowest per capita Covid-19 death rates among the states. Still, Washington continues to announce about 10 deaths daily due to the virus, according to the governor’s office.

“We’ve come a long way the past two years in developing the tools that allow us to adapt and live with Covid-19,” the governor said. “Ending this order does not mean we take it less seriously or will lose focus on how this virus has changed the way we live. We will continue our commitments to the public’s well-being, but simply through different tools that are now more appropriate for the era we’ve entered.”

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