Adams Leads All Pennsylvania Counties in Hospital COVID-19 Admission Rate; Places Second For Percent Positivity

As the number of COVID-19 continues to surge, Adams County has achieved the dubious status of having the second highest percent positivity rate – at 26.3 percent – of all 67 Pennsylvania counties. Only Perry County is higher – at 33.1 percent.

The positivity rate measures the percent of people tested who have positive results. A high percent positive shows there are high coronavirus infection rates due to high transmission in the community. A five percent positivity rate is usually considered a cutoff for imposing measures to curb spread.

In short, the COVID-19 danger is now very high in Adams County.

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With numbers this high it is clear that there is substantial community spread.  And the numbers may rise even higher in the next days following the Christmas and New Year’s holidays.

The county’s positivity rate is almost double that of the state as a whole (at 15.1 percent) and almost triple that of the U.S. overall (at about 10 percent).

Adams also reported the highest percent of Pennsylvania county hospital admissions that are due to COVID-19, at 4.0 percent. 29 patients are currently under care for COVID in the Gettysburg Hospital and other patients have been moved to other hospitals for care.

The state reports there have been 325 cases among residents and 45 cases among employees in nursing and personal care homes, resulting in 26 deaths at 11 different facilities in the county. Most of the deaths and hospitalized patients are aged 65 or older.

Adams’ incidence rate per 100,000 residents, currently at 499.9, is the 19th highest in the state.

Adams has seen over 1,100 new cases in the past two weeks, bringing the total number to 4,154. The case count has more than doubled in the past month.

At this time there have been 74 deaths in the county

State and county health officials continue to stress the need for safety measures.

Tom Wolf has banned indoor dining and required mask-wearing in all businesses and whenever leaving home.

“We are concerned we could see an increase again in January if people don’t stay the course,” said Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine..

The Wolf Administration continues to stress the role Pennsylvanians play in helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19:

Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.

Cover any coughs or sneezes with your elbow, not your hands.

Clean surfaces frequently.

Stay home to avoid spreading COVID-19, especially if you are unwell.

If you must go out, you are required to wear a mask when in a business or where it is difficult to maintain proper social distancing.

Download the COVIDAlert PA app and make your phone part of the fight. The free app can be found in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store by searching for “covidalert pa”.

chuck
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Charles (Chuck) Stangor is Gettysburg Connection's Owner, Publisher, and Editor in Chief. I would like to hear from you. Please contact me at cstangor@gettysburgconnection.org.

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Barb Goodno
Barb Goodno
3 years ago

Thank you for the COVID-19 update — I mistakenly thought we were doing better than this. It is far too easy to be complacent (and it shows). In this new year, we need to not let our guard down and exercise necessary discipline; there is light at the end of this tunnel. Let us stay the course — together!

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