As COVID cases continue to surge in Ohio and across the country, we’re seeing a similar spike here in Hamilton County.
“This is a dire time for the state of Ohio and, indeed, for Hamilton County,” said Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus in a press briefing today. “The spread of the virus is accelerating. Our hospital systems are strained, our schools are strained, our businesses are strained — I think it’s safe to say we’re all under strain.”
Driehaus said there were 4,385 new COVID cases reported in the county over the past week.
“I almost feel like I should drop the mic right now and not say anything else. That is such a dramatic increase,” she said. “It’s astounding. It’s super concerning.”
There have also been 92 new hospitalizations and two deaths.
“To put these numbers in broader perspective: On March 19, we announced the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Hamilton County. It would take more than three months, until (June) 24 when our total case count crossed 4,000,” Driehaus said. “We have now seen more than 4,000 cases in the last week alone in Hamilton County.”
On March 19 we announced the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Hamilton County, It would take more than three months until June 24, when our total case count crossed 4,000. We have now seen more than 4,000 new cases in the last week alone. pic.twitter.com/tsUTiYeCRC
— Denise Driehaus (@DeniseDriehaus) November 12, 2020
“This should be an alarm bell for all of us,” she said.
Hamilton County Public Health Commissioner Greg Kesterman said there has been a “straight uphill climb in our case numbers in Hamilton County.”
Last week, the county-wide average was 244 COVID cases per day. It is now 320 cases per day.
Kesterman said the only thing keeping the county in red on the Ohio Public Health Advisory System, and not escalating to purple (a level four emergency), is our hospitalizations. They have remained fairly consistent in Hamilton County, but hospitalizations across our 14-county region have “skyrocketed,” he said, with more than 450 COVID patients in area hospital systems.
“The time to act has to be now,” he said. “We have to make change to start improving things here in our county before our systems become so overwhelmed that we won’t be able to get the necessary care.”
Obviously, this impacts Thanksgiving.
“This year we have to change our plans,” Kesterman said.
Current advice is that if anyone in your household has been exposed to or tested positive for COVID, Thanksgiving should be held only with those in your immediate household. The same goes for those who have COVID symptoms, feel sick or are in quarantine.
“Each family is going to have to make their own decisions based on risk,” Kesterman said. “Clearly, the public health recommendation this year because of the pandemic is to take no risk, so stay within your household bubble and not branch out.”
Hamilton County provided three different slides outlining various levels of risk for Thanksgiving festivities:
“While the challenge of COVID-19 in Hamilton County seems insurmountable, the solutions remain constant and simple: masks, social distancing and hand washing,” Driehaus said.
If you need a COVID test, find testing sites at cagisportal.maps.arcgis.com.
This article appears in The Gift Guide.