Virus numbers remain stable; 34% of Kentuckians have been vaccinated, 22% fully; daily death average is now below 10

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chart, adapted by Ky. Health News; click to enlarge.

By Al Cross

Kentucky Health News

The share of Kentuckians testing positive for the coronavirus rose two-tenths of a percentage point Saturday, to 2.99%, but that was still within the range in which the key indicator has been for three weeks.

The state reported 505 new cases of the virus, lowering the seven-day rolling average by 12, to 525 per day. That was the lowest in almost nine months.

However, the statewide rate of daily new cases increased to 10.05 per 100,000 residents, an increase of 0.1. Kentucky's rate remained 35th among the states, according to The New York Times data tracker.

Counties with rates more than double the statewide rate were Harlan, 29.7; Bracken, 25.8; Allen, 25.5; Powell, 25.4; Bath, 25.1; Casey, 24.8; Menifee, 24.2; Lawrence, 21.5; Simpson, 20.8; McCreary, 20.7; Logan, 20.6; Floyd, 20.5; and Robertson, 20.3.

Counties with more than five new cases were Jefferson, 81; Fayette, 22; Warren, 21; Kenton, 15; Green, 14; Trigg, 14; Montgomery, 13; Boone, Daviess and Laurel, 12; Campbell, 11; Pulaski, 10; Allen, Graves, Henderson and Perry, 9; Christian, Greenup, Hardin, and Lincoln, 8; Bullitt and Franklin, 7; and Barren, Boyd and Lewis, 6.

Vaccination update: Gov. Andy Beshear announced on Facebook that 1.5 million Kentuckians, just over one-third of the population, had been vaccinated for the virus. That is the figure for people who have received at least one dose; two of the three available vaccines require two doses for full effectiveness.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data tracker says more than 1.51 million Kentuckians have been vaccinated with a total more 2.47 million doses, and 22.2% of Kentucky's total population has been fully vaccinated.

Youth under 16 are not yet eligible for the vaccine, pending clinical trials, and one of the vaccines is authorized only for adults, those 18 and up. The CDC says 28.5% of Kentuckians 18 and up are fully vaccinated. That is higher than any adjoining state but West Virginia, which is barely ahead at 28.6%.

Woodford County leads Kentucky in the percentage of residents and adults fully vaccinated, 32.2% and 41.1%, respectively. The lowest is Spencer County, with 9.8% of total adults fully vaccinated.

Deaths keep declining: The state added 14 fatalities to its list of Covid-19 deaths, raising the toll to 6,421. Ten were from regular health-department reports and four from the ongoing audit of death certificates.

The daily rate of regularly reported deaths, as a 14-day average, has been falling almost daily for three weeks. It is now 9.6 8.9 per day. That is a little more less than one-fifth of the highest daily average of 45.3, set in early February. (Updated numbers reflect the state's correction of its reported data.)

As usual for a weekend, the state did not release a list of fatalities itemized by age, county, sex and date of death. Click here for the state's daily report.

In other pandemic news Saturday:

• Kentucky hospitals reported 370 Covid-19 patients, 12 fewer than Friday, with 92 of them in intensive care (down 14) and 48 of those on ventilators (down 12).
• The state came close to having none of its hospital regions using more than 80% of intensive-care beds, a level of concern. The Lake Cumberland region, which has long run around 90%, fell to 82%.
• The New York Times published a list of food processing plants that have had more than 50 coronavirus cases. The Perdue Farms facility at Cromwell in Ohio County ranked 22nd, with 342 cases. Others on the list were Tyson Foods, Robards, Henderson County, 103; Pilgrim's Pride, Hickory, Graves County, 96; and JBS, Louisville, 78. All are meat plants. The Nestle frozen-foods processing plant in Mount Sterling has had 74.