OWENSBORO, Ky. — In what’s becoming a tragic bi-weekly occurrence, the Green River District Health Department has reported the death of another Ohio Countian due to COVID-19 complications in today’s report. The GRDHD also reported the death of an Ohio Countian in Tuesday’s report. For September, the GRDHD reported that 15 Ohio Countians died due to COVID-19 related issues, and 18 Ohio Countians have died from COVID-19 related issues since the Delta variant surge. Currently, there are two Ohio Countians hospitalized with COVID-19 related complications.
The GRDHD reported 78 new confirmed COVID-19 cases since Tuesday’s report. For September, Ohio County added 835 new confirmed COVID-19 cases to its total cases. Ohio County’s total cases now stands at 4,204 confirmed COVID-19 cases. Ohio County continues to have the highest incidence rate of COVID-19 in the entire Green River District.
Elsewhere in the Green River District for Friday, Oct. 1, 2021, the GRDHD reported 395 total new confirmed COVID-19 cases with 201 in Daviess County, eight in Hancock County, 46 in Henderson County, 17 in McLean County, 78 in Ohio County, 17 in Union County, and 28 in Webster County.
In addition to the COVID-19 related death in Ohio County, there were three other COVID-19 related deaths in the Green River District, one resident of McLean County and two residents of Union County.
The current seven-day average for new cases in the seven-county district is 134 new cases a day. The newly reported cases were investigated between Sept. 28-30.
- There have been 34,583 reported COVID-19 cases in the district to date.
- There have been 522 COVID-19 related deaths in the district.
- The state of Kentucky is currently reporting 691,363 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 8,770 statewide deaths.
“We are continuing to see very high incidence rates of COVID-19,” said Clay Horton, GRDHD Public Health Director. “The best way to protect yourself and those you love is to get vaccinated against COVID-19. COVID-19 vaccines are safe and highly effective. Wearing a mask when in public or around people you don’t live with is an effective way to reduce spread. If you are not yet vaccinated, go get vaccinated today. If you have to be in indoor public spaces, wear a mask. If you are around many people right now, you should assume you are being exposed to the virus and do everything you can to protect yourself.”
Ohio County’s percentage of vaccinations still remains very low at 38.96%. Ohio County ranks near the bottom of the state in vaccinations.
The Delta variant of COVID-19 is much more dangerous and more easily spread. Those who haven’t gotten vaccinated, or only received one of a two-shot vaccination, should strongly reconsider.
GRDHD COVID-19 Vaccine & Testing Availability
All persons age 12 or older are eligible for Pfizer and all persons age 18 and older are eligible for Moderna. Visit healthdepartment.org or call your local county health department to be placed on our scheduling list.
CDC recommends that anyone with any signs or symptoms of COVID-19 get tested, regardless of vaccination status or prior infection. If you get tested because you have symptoms or were potentially exposed to the virus, you should stay away from others pending test results and follow the advice of your healthcare provider or a public health professional. Green River District Health
Department is offering free COVID-19 testing. To schedule an appointment, visit the GRDHD website, healthdepartment.org, and follow the COVID-19 Test prompts or call your local county health department. You must be pre-registered to be tested.
Kentucky residents can visit vaccine.ky.gov to find a vaccine location and sign-up for update notifications. Additional COVID-19 vaccine information can be found at vaccines.gov.
Retail pharmacies and health centers are also providing COVID-19 vaccinations.
Kentucky COVID-19 vaccine dashboard and information: https://govstatus.egov.com/ky-covid-vaccine.
Kentucky COVID-19 Vaccine Hotline: 800-722-5725 can answer general COVID-19 vaccine questions.
Owensboro Health – You can make a new COVID-19 vaccination appointment online at owensborohealth.org/vaccine or by calling central scheduling at 270-685-7100.
Deaconess in Henderson County and Union County – COVID-19 vaccine information can be found at https://www.deaconess.com/Coronavirus/COVID-19-Vaccine.
Ohio County Healthcare – To schedule a COVID-19 vaccination appointment visit https://ochcares.com/COVID or call 270-215-9082 Monday through Friday from 8:00 am – 4:30 pm.
Demographics
The cases being reported from the Green River District Health Department are being investigated and confirmed locally. These cases are then reported to the Kentucky Department for Public Health.
Average Age: 41
Age Range: 5 days to 102 years old
Male: 47%
Female: 53%
Additional COVID-19 Guidance
A person is considered fully vaccinated 2 weeks after their second dose in a 2-dose series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or 2 weeks after a single-dose vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine. If you don’t meet these requirements, regardless of your age, you are NOT fully vaccinated. If you have COVID-19 like symptoms you should get tested regardless of vaccination status. If you are fully vaccinated and have a close exposure with someone that is infected (tested positive for COVID-19) you do not need to quarantine as long as you are asymptomatic but it is recommended that you get tested 3-5 days after the exposure.
For additional guidance go to https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully- vaccinated.html
If you are sick, experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, including but not limited to a fever, cough, and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, or feel you have a medical emergency, call your health care provider. Adults over 60 and people who have severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease seem to be at higher risk for more serious COVID-19 illness. Those individuals should be extra vigilant and stay home.
To help answer the community’s questions about COVID-19, the Kentucky Department for Public health has set up a website with the latest guidance and information for Kentucky residents – www.kycovid19.ky.gov. The public can also call the Kentucky COVID-19 hotline at 800-722-5725.