COVID-19 case totals reach 2-month highs as hospitalizations rise in Centre County, PA
COVID-19 hospitalizations are increasing at a troubling rate in Centre County, Mount Nittany Health officials said Friday.
In July, the hospital has admitted 37 COVID-positive patients and had a daily average of six patients. Since July 23, the daily average has risen to nine, the health care system said.
“We are concerned that we are seeing a steady increase in the number of people hospitalized for COVID. The vast majority of people who have been hospitalized at the (m)edical (c)enter for COVID are not fully vaccinated,” Tiffany Cabibbo, chief nursing officer and executive vice president, patient care services, said in a statement. “The COVID vaccine is highly effective and our best defense to return to normal activities. We have vaccinated more than 45,000 people in our community, and we strongly encourage everyone to receive it.”
Cases rise in county, state
The increase in hospitalizations comes as daily case totals reached their highest levels in two months in both the county and state.
Centre County reported 57 cases between last Saturday and Friday, an increase of 16 compared to the previous week.
Daily case totals ranged from a high of 15 on Thursday to a low of three on Monday. Overall, there have been 17,053 cases — 15,529 confirmed and 1,524 probable — along with 72,686 negative tests.
The state Health Department has not reported any COVID deaths in Centre County since July 2. The total remains at 228.
Pennsylvania reported 5,525 cases during the past week, an increase of 2,317 from the previous seven days. Daily case totals ranged from a low of 557 on Sunday to a high of 1,110 on Friday. Thursday’s report of 1,088 cases marked the first day with a four-digit total since May 28.
The statewide case total stands at 1,224,500. There have been 4,906,443 negative tests, and 97% of people have recovered.
The number of deaths rose by 30 this week to 27,850. That’s four fewer deaths than the previous week.
Vaccine demand increases
Slightly more than 1,000 vaccine doses were given to Centre County residents this week, according to the state’s vaccine dashboard, compared to 862 during the previous seven days. In all, 152,140 vaccines have been given — 77,634 full and 74,506 partial.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 56.7% of the county’s total population has received at least one dose while 49.3% of residents are fully vaccinated. About 97% of residents 65 and older have received at least one dose, while about 87% are fully vaccinated.
Across Pennsylvania, excluding Philadelphia and federal facilities, 11,613,138 doses have been given, and 5,704,720 people are fully vaccinated. An average of 12,500 people received the vaccine each day this week, which shows an increase in demand from the previous seven days. The week before, an average of 11,200 were vaccinated each day.
The CDC said Pennsylvania ranks fifth among the states for total doses given, and 62.8% of Keystone State residents 18 and older are fully vaccinated. The CDC figures cover all 67 counties in the state.
Hospitalizations rise
Hospitalizations continue to increase across the state. Between July 23 and Friday, the number of patients rose by 126. On July 1, there were 313 patients; on Friday, there were 473.
Mount Nittany Medical Center is treating 11 COVID-19 patients between ages 33 and 88, a spokesperson said Friday. That’s an increase of three patients from the prior Friday.
“We encourage everyone to continue to stay vigilant against COVID and exercise behaviors to stay safe, including masking, social distancing, and cleaning your hands often,” the health system said.
PA encourages vaccinations
As cases and hospitalizations rise, Gov. Tom Wolf and the state’s coronavirus task force — which includes Democratic and Republican members of the General Assembly — asked fellow lawmakers to urge their constituents to get the vaccine, The Associated Press reported Friday.
The state also plans to launch a program next week to remind people via text message to get their second Pfizer or Moderna vaccine dose. Texts will be sent to more than 250,000 people who got their first dose between Dec. 14 and May 14 and have yet to receive a second. The Health Department said Friday that those who will be contacted gave phone numbers to providers when they made an appointment for their first dose, and individual vaccine providers have used text messages to send appointment reminders.
“The goal of these reminders is to make sure people know that it is never too late to get your second dose, and to help individuals make a new second dose appointment at a provider convenient to them, “ acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said in a statement. “Even if you were one of the first people to get vaccinated back in December, if you missed your second dose, there is still time to get it.”
House Republicans opposed the plan, saying there are “privacy concerns and that residents did not give permission to be contacted,” AP said.
Vaccine appointments can be made with Mount Nittany Health at mountnittany.org/coronavirus or with other providers at vaccines.gov.
Positivity rates rise
Pennsylvania and Centre County both saw their positivity rates rise past 3.5%, according to the state’s early warning monitoring system dashboard. The statewide rate rose to 3.9% for the period July 23-Thursday from less than 3%.
Centre County’s rate rose to 3.6% from last week’s reading of 2.9%. Sullivan County has the week’s lowest rate at 0, while McKean County has the highest rate at 11.6%.
Centre County’s case rate per 100,000 residents increased to 25.9 from 20.3. The statewide case rate per 100,000 is 32, up from 19.6 the previous week.
Centre County remains in the moderate level of transmission as of Friday, according to the CDC. That’s the second lowest of the CDC”s four risk levels.
This story was originally published July 31, 2021 at 7:00 AM with the headline "COVID-19 case totals reach 2-month highs as hospitalizations rise in Centre County, PA."