By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News
Coronavirus cases and the share of Kentuckians testing positive for the virus set records for the third day in a row, caused by the Omicron variant which Gov. Andy Beshear said “is now the predominant variant in Kentucky and across the country.”
Kentucky reported 9,836 new coronavirus cases Thursday, up 29 from Wednesday. That brings the seven-day rolling average to 6,220 per day. Of today’s new cases, 21% are in people 18 and younger.
Kentucky’s seven-day infection rate is 133 daily cases per 100,000 people. The New York Times ranks Kentucky’s rate 32nd among the states.
The share of Kentuckians testing positive for the virus in the past seven days is 23.67%, up from 22.89% on Wednesday. “Nearly one in four people being tested are coming up positive,” said Beshear
Because the Omicron variant is so contagious, Beshear has said one of the most important metrics to follow are hospitalizations, which continue to rise.
“They’re starting to increase rapidly,” Beshear said. “Although we’re hopeful we will not see a similar increase in ICU admissions and patients needing a ventilator, there are still people getting very sick, and the trend does not look positive in either of those areas.”
Kentucky hospitals reported 1,783 Covid-19 patients Thursday, 79 more than Wednesday, with 402 of them in intensive care units (up 8) and 227 on mechanical ventilation (up 16).
Nine of the state’s 10 hospital-readiness regions are using at least 80% of their intensive-care-unit capacity, with seven over 90%. The Lake Cumberland region is using all its ICU beds. Overall, 91% of ICU beds are in use.
Beshear said the increase in hospitalizations is “real cause for concern that hospitals can and maybe will be overrun” and the state is looking at ways to augment them, including use of nursing programs and the National Guard.
He also called Kentuckians to help: “Folks, you can help us. You can help us by getting vaccinated and getting your booster, which makes it very unlikely that you’ll end up in the hospital, and then wearing a mask when it’s appropriate.”
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| State Department for Public Health graph; click it to enlarge. |
In another effort to encourage vaccination, Beshear showed how deaths related to Covid-19 are much higher among those who are unvaccinated, across all age groups.
Since July, there have been 453 Covid-19 deaths among unvaccinated Kentuckians younger than 50, and 15 among those who were vaccinated. Among those in their 50s, 643 deaths were among the unvaccinated and 51 were among the vaccinated. Of those in their 60s, 920 victims were unvaccinated and 179 were unvaccinated. Of those 70 and older, 1,495 were unvaccinated and 699 were vaccinated.
Since June, when the Delta variant hit Kentucky, 10% of all deaths are among people in their 30s. In Kentucky, 61% of people aged 25 to 39 have received at least one dose of a vaccine. That’s almost the rate for the total population, 62%. But only 27% of fully vaccinated people have received a booster shot.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has endorsed an advisory panel’s recommendation that 12-to-15-year-olds should get the Pfizer-BioNTech booster at least five months after their second Pfizer shot. Boosters were already approved for 16- and 17-year-olds.
At his regular Thursday press conference, Beshear was asked if he was concerned about the large number of state legislators not wearing masks. He said that given how fast the virus is spreading, “People are just putting themselves at a risk that they shouldn’t. . . . I just really hope that people will wear masks, and I don’t want to see anybody harmed.”
Asked if we can get to the other side of this Omicron surge without masks, he said, “We’re gonna get on the other side of the surge one way or another, the question is how many people are hurt in the process. The number of people that we lose will be based in part on the number of cases that we have.”
He acknowledged that people are tired of wearing masks, but said, “The need to wear a mask to lessen the spread has never been greater, even if the personal threat to you might be a little bit less.” The Omicron variant appears to be causing milder cases, but the number of cases still threatens hospitals.
Beshear said “some significant outbreaks” are in state prisons, including the Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex in West Liberty, the Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women at Pewee Valley, Roederer Correctional Complex at LaGrange and Lee Adjustment Center at Beattyville.
Beshear said prisoners and staff have good vaccination rates and that the prisons have protocols to protect the inmates, including limiting visitation, separating prisoners who test positive for the virus and providing mask.
The state reported 35 more Covid-19 deaths, bringing the pandemic death toll to 12,319. Over the last two weeks, it has reported an average of 25 per day.