Despite your local health departments’ faithful fight to slow the spread of COVID-19 via Case Investigation and Contact Tracing and the issuing of isolation and quarantine orders, Mother Nature is winning the battle. Except for the week when we had the outbreak in the nursing home, in terms of new cases and active cases, last week was our worst week since the outbreak began. Also, in terms of new cases, it was our state’s worst week since the outbreak began. If the new cases rate continues to grow as it has over the last 2 weeks, we are not far from our capacity being overwhelmed – meaning, we will not have enough staff available to investigate every close contact. Additionally, we are already starting to see hospital bed capacity become a concern at some locations around our nation. It is foolhardy to think that cannot happen in Kentucky. If this were to happen – once the hospital capacity is overwhelmed or once too many medical staff are off sick with the disease – it will not matter what your health care need is, the hospital will be overwhelmed.
NOW is our window of opportunity to prevent this eventuality. Now. Not a month from now, not a week from now. NOW. If the public waits too long to shake off its complacency with the public health guidance, the disease will be so embedded within our communities it will be nearly impossible to slow its further spread. Our best chance for slowing the spread is for everyone to wear a mask when out in public, to avoid crowds, to social distance (stay 6-feet from others), to wash their hands with soap and water often and thoroughly, to stay home if they have a fever or are coughing, to increase sanitation, and to avoid touching their faces.
Deaths: We are pleased to report no new deaths today. We have experienced a total of 27 deaths resulting in an 7.5% mortality rate among known cases.
Hospitalizations: We presently have 6 cases in the hospital. We have had a total of 68 hospitalizations resulting in an 19% hospitalization rate among known cases.
Released (Recovered) Cases: We released 1 case today from isolation (recovered). Released cases include, Taylor: 1. In all, we have released 71.8% of our total cases.
Total (Cumulative) Cases: The Lake Cumberland District has experienced a total of 358 cases since the onset of the outbreak. This has resulted in the health department reaching out to over 2392 individuals during our contact tracing.
Active (Current) Cases: Taking all things into account, this leaves us with 74 active cases in our district across 8 of our 10 counties. Of those active cases, 14 are asymptomatic.
New Cases: We report that our total case count has increased by 12 today: Adair: 5; Casey: 3; Clinton: 1; McCreary: 1; Russell: 1; and, Taylor: 1. The new cases include:
- Adair: A 33-year-old female who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
- Adair: A 3-year-old female who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
- Adair: A 32-year-old male who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
- Adair: A 54-year-old male who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
- Adair: A 52-year-old female who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
- Casey: A 1-year-old female who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
- Casey: A 32-year-old female who is self-isolated, asymptomatic
- Casey: A 21-year-old female who is self-isolated, asymptomatic
- Clinton: A 56-year-old female who is self-isolated, asymptomatic
- McCreary: A 61-year-old female who is self-isolated, asymptomatic
- Russell: A 49-year-old male who is hospitalized, still symptomatic
- Taylor: A 28-year-old female who is self-isolated, still symptomatic
The Lake Cumberland area has experienced 358 Cumulative Confirmed Cases and there have been 15,188 Confirmed COVID-19 cases across 119 Kentucky Counties as of 06/27/20 (this includes 15,167 statewide plus 21 recently reported cases in Lake Cumberland not in the Governor’s/Department for Public Health’s daily report). Regardless of the confirmed case count for any Lake Cumberland County, we believe COVID-19 to be widespread. LCDHD is working to identify and contact all those with whom any positive case may have come into close contact.
