Another day, another record. Kentucky hits nearly 10,000 new COVID cases in 1 day.
Kentucky confirmed nearly 10,000 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday for the first time ever, and recorded yet another record high positivity rate of 22.89%.
“Omicron is surging, [bringing] more cases than we ever thought possible in any given day,” Gov. Andy Beshear said Wednesday afternoon in a video on Twitter, hours before he’s scheduled to deliver his State of the Commonwealth address to lawmakers at the state Capitol.
The 9,807 new cases reported in a single day on Wednesday came a day after the previous largest ever single-day case increase on Tuesday of 6,915 new cases. Fifty-eight people were admitted to hospitals with coronavirus in the last day, bringing the total number of hospitalizations to 1,704. There are 394 people in intensive care units with COVID-19 (an increase of one person) and 211 on ventilators (35 fewer than Tuesday).
This latest and most severe surge is fueled by the unprecedentedly contagious omicron variant, which last week accounted for a projected 97.5% of all new infections across the South, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The governor again begged people to get their vaccines and booster shots — the most effective tools to thwart severe infection and death. Though omicron is causing more breakthrough infections than previous coronavirus strains, unvaccinated people continue to drive new infections, virus hospitalizations and deaths both nationally and in Kentucky. Between March 1 and December 31, 82.4% of all people who tested positive, 84.4% of all people who were hospitalized with the virus, and 83% of people who died were unvaccinated, according to the Kentucky Department for Public Health.
“Everybody needs to not only be vaccinated but get boosted,” Beshear said. “If you’re eligible for your booster and you haven’t gotten it yet, get it tonight, or get it tomorrow. Do not wait.”
Just over 54% of the state population — 65% of people 18 and older — are fully vaccinated. Twenty percent of the population, and 25% of all adults, have received a booster.
Beshear also announced 29 more deaths Wednesday, bringing the total number of people who’ve died from the virus to 12,284.
