Some SWNPHD counties are seeing uptick in COVID cases

    A spike in COVID-19 cases and in the number of people wanting to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are being seen throughout the SW Nebraska Public Health Department and their partners.  
    Vaccination rates across the health district have reached an average of 40%, according to Myra Stoney, health director.
    According to SWNPHD data as of July 20, Furnas County at 47% had the highest individual county vaccination rate, while Hayes County was lowest at 25%.
    This number includes fully vaccinated as well as partially vaccinated individuals who’ve received one of the two-dose vaccine, she said.  
     To meet the increased demand, SWNPHD is planning to hold COVID vaccination clinics throughout the health district by utilizing three traveling teams.  
    Each team will work with local partners to set up a shot clinic. Businesses can also sign up to have a team come to their location and offer COVID vaccinations on-site, Stoney said.
     The traveling teams will be coordinated by Kay Schmidt, Emergency Response Coordinator for SWNPHD.
    “We want to make it convenient and increase access for those folks that are wanting to get vaccinated. We need to increase our resilience to the variants that are causing more cases, and boosting vaccination rates will get us closer to herd immunity,” Schmidt said.
    Businesses and organizations interested in participating can contact SWNPHD at 308-345-4223.
    All three COVID vaccines approved for use in the United States provide protection against severe illness, hospitalization or death from COVID-19, Stoney said.  
    All hospitalized COVID-19 cases now from SWNPHD are unvaccinated individuals, she added.
     “Even if you had COVID previously, you do not have an immunity to the new variants including the Delta variant.  Vaccination is encouraged even if you previously had COVID,” said Melissa Propp, RN.
    “We are closely monitoring re-infections and health departments across the state are seeing people who had COVID in the fall now getting sick again six to eight months later,” Propp said
     Reports of outbreaks that include the Delta variant are being seen in three SWNPHD counties:  Dundy, Perkins and Red Willow, Stoney noted.
    Frontier County had an outbreak earlier in July.
    After Aug. 7, the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine will no longer be available. SWNPHD and local pharmacies and clinics will continue to give the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.  
Latest case numbers
     SWNPHD had 56 new cases of COVID-19 reported from July 12-26, bringing the weekly average of six to 28 cases per week. Seven of these cases were identified in an audit of previous case data from the fall peak.  
    A breakout of recent cases by county: Chase-0, Dundy-9, Frontier-3, Furnas-9, Hayes-1, Hitchcock-1, Keith-2, Perkins-8 and Red Willow-23, bringing the total number of cases in the district to 3,956.  
    Due to the Governor ending the emergency declaration for Nebraska, there will be no more case reports as of July 31.
    Additional COVID-19 information can be found at swhealth.ne.gov.