Clinic specimens
As of January 1, 2024, clinical specimens (excluding environmental specimens) shipped to Washington State Public Health Laboratories (WAPHL) must be ordered through the Lab Test Menu in accordance with WAC 246-101-215. If you have any questions, please email cqiteam@doh.wa.gov.Reporting notifiable conditions
In Washington State, health care providers, health care facilities, laboratories, food service establishments, child day care facilities, and schools are legally required to notify public health authorities at their local health jurisdiction of suspected or confirmed cases of selected diseases or conditions. These are referred to as notifiable conditions.
List of notifiable conditions
Most of Washington State's notifiable conditions can be found on the List of Notifiable Conditions page. Access to commonly used resources such as reporting forms and investigation guidelines for public health investigators can also be found on the page, along with links to disease pages for most conditions. For a complete list of notifiable conditions, see WAC 246-101.
Provisional reporting notifications
Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 246-101-015, Request for additional information or provisional notification and submission of specimen, allows for the state health officer to request additional data components to be submitted with reports and specimen submittal of notifiable conditions. Current provisional reporting requests are listed below:
What is the purpose of reporting and surveillance?
Public health surveillance includes reporting, investigation, collection, and distribution of data about illness and death. This surveillance helps prevent and control disease in Washington State by:
- Describing disease trends
- Identifying and controlling the sources of infection
- Preventing disease
- Educating the public, policy makers and health care planners so they can make informed decisions
Notifiable conditions directory
2022 Communicable Disease Report (PDF)
LHJ CD Epi Investigator Manual (PDF)