Lexington COVID-19 cases dropped in February. It’s ‘too early for a full celebration’
In newly completed February, Lexington reported its fewest new COVID-19 cases since August, which health experts said was “encouraging” despite warnings to continue safety protocols.
The city’s 2,694 new cases in February were a 56 percent drop from January, a month in which Lexington set a new case record. Hospitalizations also declined by more than 50 percent compared to the previous month.
“As more and more people get vaccinated every week, we hope to see the numbers continue to stay lower than they were at the end of 2020, but it is still far too early for a full celebration,” Fayette County health department spokesman Kevin Hall said. “That said, as difficult as the past 12 months have been for everyone, we will certainly take this good news.”
Fayette County exited the state’s COVID-19 “red zone” for the first time since October over the weekend. The state Department for Public Health uses color-coded zones to classify the severity of COVID-19 spread in every county and calls the measure “incidence rate.”
Fayette County’s incidence rate was over the red zone threshold of 25 for about four months. The incidence rate is calculated by taking each county’s average number of cases per day over a seven-day period and dividing it by the county’s total population. That number is multiplied by 100,000 to get the number of cases per 100,000 residents.
Lexington’s hospitals have felt less of a burden as a result of recent case decreases. UK HealthCare had 88 COVID-19 patients as of Jan. 2, with 18 of those in the intensive care unit, according to Kristi Willett, a spokesperson. The number of total COVID-19 patients was down to 57 on Feb. 1, 16 of which were in the intensive care unit.
That number was down to 21 on Monday, with eight of them in the intensive care unit, according to Willett.
Baptist Health Lexington only had 19 COVID-19 patients Monday, according to Ruth Ann Childers, a spokesperson.
“We want to stress to keep wearing masks, washing hands and being socially distant, even after being vaccinated,” Childers said.
Lexington’s COVID-19 data has followed the same trends as much of the rest of Kentucky. On Sunday, Gov. Andy Beshear reported the state had its seventh consecutive week of decreasing new cases. Lexington has reported the same streak over the past seven weeks.
“We can see the end, the light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter,” Beshear said. “The directions that we’re headed are good, but we can’t quit until we get the job done.”
Hall also emphasized that local residents need to continue taking precautions.
“The lower numbers in February are certainly encouraging and gives a sign for all of Kentucky the importance of getting the vaccine when the opportunity is available,” Hall said “... However, we must continue to wear our masks, stay physically distant and wash our hands and not let up – we cannot get relaxed with what we’ve done so far.”
Lexington surpasses 150,000 vaccine doses administered
Lexington reported Monday 28,296 new vaccine doses administered over the past week, pushing the total number of doses administered to 153,138 since doses first became available. The number reported encompasses all vaccine sites across Fayette County, except for doses given at the Lexington Veterans Affairs hospital.
The doses administered over the past week were the most given in a single week, according to data from the city.
Lexington health department expands vaccine clinic to Phase 1C
The Lexington health department this week opened its vaccine clinic to eligible 1C residents for the first time. The health department’s clinics, which typically feature a limited supply of vaccines, were previously only open to residents eligible in phases 1A and 1B.
Those phases included health care workers, nursing home residents, anyone over 70, first responders, K-12 school personnel, and child care workers. The addition of 1C now opens eligibility to anyone over 60, anyone over 16 with high-risk conditions and all essential workers.
Phase 1C is estimated to encompass about one-third of Lexington’s total population, according to the health department. This week’s health department clinic only has about 500 doses available for 1C residents, and residents 60 and older are being prioritized. Those eligible who want to sign up are asked to go to lfchd.org/vaccine or call 859-899-2222.
This story was originally published March 1, 2021 at 1:41 PM.