This section describes the conditions about which Washington's laboratories must notify public health authorities of on a statewide basis. The board finds that the conditions in Table Lab-1 of this section are notifiable for the prevention and control of communicable and noninfectious diseases and conditions in Washington. The board also finds that submission of specimens for many of these conditions will further prevent the spread of disease.
(1) Laboratory directors shall notify public health authorities of positive preliminary test results and positive final test results of the conditions identified in Table Lab-1 of this section as individual case reports and provide specimen submissions following the requirements in WAC
.
(2) Local health officers may require additional conditions to be notifiable within the local health officer's jurisdiction.
| Notifiable Condition | Time Frame for Notification | Notifiable to Local Health Department | Notifiable to Department of Health | Specimen Submission to Department of Health (Type & Timing) |
Arboviruses
(West Nile virus, eastern and western equine encephalitis, dengue, St. Louis encephalitis, La Crosse encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis, Powassan, California serogroup, Chikungunya) | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
Acute:
IgM positivity
PCR positivity
Viral isolation | | | | |
| Bacillus anthracis (Anthrax) | Immediately | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Blood Lead Level | Elevated Levels – 2 business days
Nonelevated Levels – Monthly | | √ | |
| Bordetella pertussis (Pertussis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture, when available (2 business days) |
| Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme disease) | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
| Borrelia hermsii or recurrentis (Relapsing fever, tick- or louse-borne) | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
| Brucella species (Brucellosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Cultures (2 business days) |
| Burkholderia mallei and pseudomallei | Immediately | √ | | Culture (2 business days); additional specimens when available |
| Campylobacter species (Campylobacteriosis) | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
| CD4 + (T4) lymphocyte counts and/or CD4 + (T4) (patients aged thirteen or older) | Monthly | Only when the local health department is designated by the Department of Health | √ (Except King County) | |
| Chlamydophila psittaci (Psittacosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
| Chlamydia trachomatis | 2 business days | √ | | |
| Clostridium botulinum (Botulism) | Immediately | √ | | Serum and/or stool; any other specimens available (i.e., foods submitted for suspected foodborne case; debrided tissue submitted for suspected wound botulism) (2 business days) |
| Corynebacterium diphtheriae (Diphtheria) | Immediately | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Cryptococcus non v. neoformans | N/A | N/A | | Culture (2 business days) or other specimens upon request |
| Cryptosporidium (Cryptosporidiosis) | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
| Cyclospora cayetanensis (Cyclosporiasis) | 2 business days | √ | | Specimen (2 business days) |
| E. coli – Refer to "Shiga toxin-producing E. coli" | Immediately | √ | | |
| Francisella tularensis (Tularemia) | Immediately | √ | | Culture or other appropriate clinical material (2 business days) |
| Giardia lamblia (Giardiasis) | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
| Haemophilus influenzae (children < 5 years of age) | Immediately | √ | | Culture, from sterile sites only, when type is unknown (2 business days) |
| Hantavirus | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
Hepatitis A virus (acute) by IgM positivity
(Hepatocellular enzyme levels to accompany report) | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
| Hepatitis B virus (acute) by IgM positivity | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
| Hepatitis B virus | Monthly | √ | | |
| | – HBsAg (Surface antigen) | | | | |
| | – HBeAg (E antigen) | | | | |
| | – HBV DNA | | | | |
| Hepatitis C virus | Monthly | √ | | |
| Hepatitis D virus | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
| Hepatitis E virus | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
| Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection (for example, positive Western Blot assays, P24 antigen or viral culture tests) | 2 business days | Only when the local health department is designated by the Department of Health | √ (Except King County) | |
| Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection (ll viral load detection test results - detectable and undetectable) | Monthly | Only when the local health department is designated by the Department of Health | √ (Except King County) | |
| Influenza virus, novel or unsubtypable strain | Immediately | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen (2 business days) |
| Legionella species (Legionellosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Leptospira species (Leptospirosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
Listeria monocytogenes
(Listeriosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
Measles virus (rubeola)
Acute:
IgM positivity
PCR positivity | Immediately | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
Mumps virus
Acute:
IgM positivity
PCR positivity | Within 24 hours | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
| Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Tuberculosis) | 2 business days | | √ | Culture (2 business days) |
| Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Tuberculosis) (Antibiotic sensitivity for first isolates) | 2 business days | | √ | |
| Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Gonorrhea) | 2 business days | √ | | |
| Neisseria meningitidis (Meningococcal disease) | Immediately | √ | | Culture (from sterile sites only) (2 business days) |
| Plasmodium species (Malaria) | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
Poliovirus
Acute:
IgM positivity
PCR positivity | Immediately | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
| Rabies virus (human or animal) | Immediately | √ (Pathology Report Only) | | Clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
| Salmonella species (Salmonellosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| SARS-associated coronavirus | Immediately | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
| Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (enterohemorrhagic E. coli including, but not limited to, E. coli O157:H7) | Immediately | √ | | Culture (2 business days) or specimen if no culture is available |
| Shigella species (Shigellosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Treponema pallidum (Syphilis) | 2 business days | √ | | Serum (2 business days) |
| Trichinella species | 2 business days | √ | | On request |
| Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Variola virus (smallpox) | Immediately | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
| Vibrio cholerae O1 or O139 (Cholera) | Immediately | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
| Vibrio species (Vibriosis) | Within 24 hours | √ | | Culture (2 business days) |
Viral hemorrhagic fever:
Arenaviruses
Bunyaviruses
Filoviruses
Flaviviruses | Immediately | √ | | Isolate or clinical specimen associated with positive result (2 business days) |
| Yellow fever virus | Immediately | √ | | Serum (2 business days) |
| Yersinia enterocolitica or pseudotuberculosis | Within 24 hours | √ | | On request |
| Yersinia pestis (Plague) | Immediately | √ | | Culture or other appropriate clinical material (2 business days) |
(3) The local health department may request laboratory reporting of additional test results pertinent to an investigation of a notifiable condition (e.g., hepatocellular enzyme levels for hepatitis or negative stool test results on salmonellosis rescreening).
(4) Laboratory directors may notify the local health department, the department, or both of other laboratory results.