Kentucky's Covid-19 cases took a big jump last week, but hospitalizations were down

New York Times graphs, adapted by Kentucky Health News; to enlarge any image, click on it.

By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

The number of Kentuckians with Covid-19 nearly doubled last week over the prior week, but fewer people were hospitalized with it. 

The state Department for Public Health reported 6,746 new cases last week, or 963 per day. That's an 89 percent increase over the prior week, when the state reported 3,570 new cases. Gov. Andy Beshear has said that the state's up-and-down weekly case rates could indicate a longer-term plateau. 

Of the new cases, 14% were in people 18 and younger. 

The number of Covid-19 patients in Kentucky hospitals dropped again this week. As of Monday, hospitals reported 250 Covid-19 patients, down from 310 the week before; 35 were in intensive care, down seven; and 14 were on mechanical ventilation, down five. 

The share of Kentuckians testing positive for the coronavirus was 6.73%, down a bit from 7.29% the week before. The figures do not include at-home tests. 

The weekly new-case incidence rate was 10.87 cases per 100,000 residents, slightly up from 10.8 the week prior. Trimble County was the only county that had an incidence rate more than double the state rate, at 27 cases per 100,000. The other top 10 counties were: Russell, 19.9; Union, 19.9; Metcalfe, 19.9; Owsley, 19.4; Letcher, 17.2; Floyd, 16.9; Nelson, 16.4; Hickman, 16.3; and Powell, 16.2.

The New York Times ranks Kentucky's incidence rate 20th among the states, with a 51% drop in cases over the last two weeks. 

The state attributed 49 more deaths to Covid-19 last week, up from 47 the week before. Kentucky's pandemic death toll is 17,459.