LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - The Lancaster County COVID-19 risk dial will stay in the red, though Pat Lopez, director of the health department said the county is very close to moving into the orange.
This is largely because of a drop in the daily rolling average of COVID-19 cases.
As of Sunday, the average is 132 new cases every day. Lopez said that’s the lowest its been since October.
However, Lopez said the county’s positivity rate remains high, at 25 percent, and hospitalizations have also gone up from 84 to 101 after dropping for three weeks.
“Our hospitals are optimistic but concerned about the numbers added today,” Lopez said.
Another factor is the number of people getting tested has dropped 60 percent from the beginning of December to the end of December.
“These are among the factors keeping the COVID-19 risk dial in the red for the eighth week,” Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said.
Gaylor Baird encouraged Lincoln to remain vigilant over the New Year’s Holiday.
“It would be a shame to see case numbers go up, to see a reversal of our progress when we are so close to the time when more people can get vaccinated and we can put this pandemic behind us,” Gaylor Baird said.
Lopez did bring some good news, showing the directed health measures put in place in the county have paid off.
The Health Department compared the fatality rate in the county to the rest of the state. Nebraska’s fatality rate is 9.6 deaths per 1,000 COVID-19 cases. Lancaster County’s is the second lowest in the state at 6.6 deaths per 1,000 cases.
Lancaster County has lost 150 residents. If Lancaster County had the same positivity rate as Douglas County, nearly 200 Lancaster County residents would have died. If Lancaster County had the same positivity rate as Hall County, around 300 residents would have died.
“These measures have required sacrifices but they are preventing deaths and preventing cases, your individual actions are making a difference in our community,” Lopez said.
The same goes for the overall case rate. Statewide, Lancaster County has the lowest case rate in the entire state at 6,895 cases per 100,000 residents. If Lancaster County had the same rate as Douglas County, it would add an additional 6,300 cases in Lancaster County. If Lancaster County had the same rate as Hall County, it would add an additional 8,300 cases.
“We use the scientific information we had and all of the information available nationally and in our state and looked at all of those measures from public health perspective,” Lopez said. “So even though it was very difficult we felt we were making the right decision for our community to protect them and I think that data helps show that.”
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The Link LonkDecember 30, 2020 at 06:58AM
https://www.1011now.com/2020/12/29/lancaster-county-covid-19-risk-dial-remains-in-the-red-though-officials-say-dhms-are-working/
Lancaster County COVID-19 risk dial remains in the red, though officials say DHMs are working - KOLN
https://news.google.com/search?q=Red&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
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