Pandemic keeps waning, but Ky. new-case rate ranks 6th; positive test rate falls under 8%; hospital numbers best in nearly 2 months

It was the end of the state’s Monday-to-Sunday reporting week, which was the fourth straight week with fewer cases, Gov. Andy Beshear said on social media.

Final numbers will be reported Monday, but there were a total 14,949 cases on the state’s initial, unadjusted, daily reports. That was almost as low as the week that ended Dec. 27, just before a post-holiday surge.

The seven-day rolling average of new cases is 2,136 per day. It has declined every day but four since reaching a high of 4,002 on Jan. 10.

But new cases are declining nationwide, so Kentucky remained among the top states in new cases per person, ranking sixth in a New York Times compilation. It was fifth on Saturday. The list is led by South Carolina, followed by Arkansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Texas.

Another sign of a waning pandemic was the percentage of Kentuckians testing positive for the novel coronavirus in the last seven days: 7.97%, the first time it has been below 8% since Nov. 10.

The state recorded 31 more deaths from the virus’s Covid-19 disease, 29 confirmed and two probable. Deaths are listed after a review process that can take weeks. The two-week average stands at 45 per day, just below the record 45.3 average of Friday and Saturday.

Kentucky hospitals reported 1,235 Covid-19 patients, 290 of them in intensive-care units, and 140 ICU patients on ventilators. All those figures were the fewest since Nov. 10.

Three of the 10 hospital-readiness regions reported their ICU beds more than 80% full, but two just barely. The east and northeast were at 81% and Lake Cumberland, usually the fullest, was at 93%.

The state’s case-incidence rate fell again, to 41.9 per 100,000 population in the last seven days. Counties above 60 on the state’s daily report were Allen, 83.1; Webster, 76.2; Butler, 72.1; Washington, 72; Daviess, 71.9; Madison, 67.9; McCreary, 63.8; Nelson, 61.2; and Ohio, 60.7.

Counties with 10 or more new cases Sunday were Jefferson, 245; Fayette, 130; Kenton, 84; Daviess, 70; Boone, 65; Madison, 37; Hardin, 36; Warren, 36; Jessamine, 30; Nelson, 29; McCracken, 27; Ohio, 27; Shelby, 26; Boyd, 24; Campbell, 23; Barren, 22; Bullitt, 20; Scott, 20; Henderson, Logan and Muhlenberg, 18; Christian, 17; Clay and Laurel, 16; Grant, 15; Graves, Grayson and Trigg, 14; Caldwell and Hopkins, 13; Floyd, Greenup, Hart and Oldham, 12; Bell, Harrison, Marion, Rowan and Wayne, 11; and Boyle, 10.