Natchez, Miss. – As we enter the sixth month of the COVID-19 pandemic, remaining vigilant in our daily lives is the major key in keeping ourselves, our families, and our community healthy. Aiming to continue to slow the spread of the coronavirus disease, local county and city officials have extended the mandate to wear a mask or face covering in all public spaces through the end of October.
On Tuesday, the Mississippi State Department of Health released the latest coronavirus numbers, reporting Adams County had an additional 37 new cases over the past 7 days, bringing our total to 828 compared to the prior week’s 47 new cases. The year-to-date positivity rate for Adams County now sits at 19.8 percent, which is a drop from the estimated August 31 rate of 20.8 percent, yet we are still lingering in the 20-percent range seen throughout August. The CDC recommends the positivity rate should be below 5 percent, and WHO recommends positivity rates below 5 percent for 14 straight days before lessening restrictions.
During Mayor Dan Gibson’s weekly COVID-19 Conference Call, task force officials provided additional updates on where we stand locally. Lance Boyd, CEO of Merit Health Natchez, confirmed 11 people are currently hospitalized with positive COVID-19 test results, with one patient currently on a ventilator. Merit Health Natchez’s hospitalization rate has been consistently at 8-12 positive cases for months. The facility has sufficient supplies and the staff is getting a breather, as there is a likelihood of a spike in positive coronavirus cases expected in late fall. Boyd also noted COVID-19 patients require 3 to 10 times the resources for proper treatment compared to the level of care needed for a regular patient.
The Director of the Adams County Civil Defense and Emergency Operations Center, Brad Bradford, informed that he has diligently worked with every school in the county prior to opening day, to make sure they had a plan for dealing with the students upon arrival and established protocol for when they have a COVID-19 case. The department distributed PPEs to all schools, daycares and nurseries to ensure the safety of area youth. Their goal has been to provide preventative information to everyone to make as much progress as possible, so people do not end up at the hospital for coronavirus-related complications. He advised of the safety procedures in place which includes all students adhering to mask guidelines, washing hands frequently, and refraining from touching their faces.
Additionally, Bradford explained that Adams County’s reported COVID-19 cases currently include cases reported in correctional facilities. He noted a need for state officials to consider a different reporting measure, pointing out that cases in those facilities do not directly affect the general population while the reporting does impact the county as a whole.
As Natchez Adams School District returned to classes today, Tony Fields – Director of Communications for NASD, thanked the city and county for the PPEs provided to the school district. While the majority of students, approximately 2,000 students or 80 percent, opted for virtual learning, McLaurin Elementary School has the highest numbers for in-person learning.
Fields explained that every school has a triage and upon arrival, each student has their temperature checked, they are asked to provide information about their surroundings to determine if they’ve been at risk of exposure to the virus, and lunch will be served “grab and go” style. He confirmed that all students must wear masks and explained the protocol for notification to other students and parents with the new CDC 10-day quarantine guidelines in case of positive test results. NASD must also provide weekly reports of all positive cases to the state.
Dr. Lee England, Internal Medicine physician with emphasis in infectious diseases, believes October could bring another surge in our local area per his observations and available medical information. To give a clearer perspective on numbers, the medical journals and information from his recent studies point to the probability of 300,000 deaths in the United States by the Thanksgiving holiday, increasing to over 400,000 by the end of January 2021; estimating more COVID-19 related deaths than the US suffered in WWII.
Dr. England concluded that we all have COVID fatigue, and it would be easy for folks to not continue wearing a mask or taking extra precautions. This has been ongoing for six months and it is exhausting, however we may see a large spike later in the fall and winter if we let our guards down.
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