COVID-19 deaths, cases continue to spike

By Geoffrey Woehlk | August 12, 2021 |

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MARYVILLE, Mo. — Three more are dead from COVID-19 as the county’s fatalities continue to skyrocket over the past month, crossing a grim new benchmark of 31 since the health department began tracking in the spring of last year.

The latest data released by the health department as of Aug. 9 showed that case counts and deaths continue to climb as the number of new vaccinations in the county has remained largely stagnant, though steady, since May. According to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services’ online vaccination dashboard, 297 doses were administered over the past week, as of Tuesday.

More than 9,000 Nodaway County residents have initiated a vaccine regimen, according to the state data, or about 41.2 percent of the county’s population. That’s good for 16th in the state, but far behind what local health officials had been hoping for, and well short of the national average of about 59 percent, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates.

Across the Mosaic health care system, 50 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Wednesday morning, according to Barbara Mullock, infection prevention specialist at Mosaic Medical Center – Maryville.

One of those patients was in Maryville. Of the 50 patients, only seven had been vaccinated, and Mullock said their average age was 81. None of the vaccinated patients were treated in the ICU. Among the unvaccinated hospitalized cases, the average age was 57, with the youngest checking in at 18 and the oldest at 84.

Despite the resurgence of the virus locally, only Northwest Missouri State University has taken steps to re-implement mitigation measures — an indoor mask mandate will take effect at the university on Friday. Other local public officials have not indicated any such measures are under consideration, and the issue was not mentioned during Monday’s Maryville City Council meeting.

Last year, DHSS issued a public health warning that included guidelines for communities to implement certain mitigation measures based on positivity rates and case numbers. Under an emergency order in November, the City Council tied its own mitigation measures, like occupancy limits, to those recommendations, but the order was rescinded in March and is no longer in effect.

According to those state guidelines, the county would now qualify for Category 2: Critical Risk, which requires two consecutive weeks of 7-day positivity rates of 10-14 percent and 7-day case rates of 100-349 per 100,000 population. State data shows that Nodaway County’s rates have hovered around 12-16 percent and a little north of 200, respectively.

For Category 2: Critical Risk, DHSS had recommended face coverings in all offices and businesses with 10 or more people where social distancing was not possible.

The CDC recommends that even vaccinated people should wear masks in public in “substantial or high transmission areas” to reduce the risk of spreading the virus, especially to those who have not been vaccinated. A substantial transmission area has a 7-day positivity rate of 8 percent or higher and a 7-day new case rate of 50 or higher per 100,000 population. In Missouri, only Schuyler County does not meet those criteria, according to CDC data. A high transmission area has a 7-day positivity rate of more than 10 percent, and a 7-day new case rate of more than 100 per 100,000 population. In addition to Schuyler, Worth is the only Missouri county that does not meet the standard for a high transmission area.

The uptick in cases is not unique to Nodaway County, as the delta variant — a more contagious and possibly more severe version of the novel coronavirus — has been a primary driver of new cases across the country, especially among the unvaccinated.

Local health officials have continued to urge Nodaway County residents to get vaccinated. Vaccination helps protect against all variants, including the delta variant, the CDC has said, and especially guards against serious complications that lead to hospitalization and death.

Anyone age 12 or older is eligible to be vaccinated, and vaccinations are free. To schedule a vaccination appointment, call the health department at 660-562-2755.