Coronavirus-related hospitalizations remain high in Wayne (22), Ashland (28) and Richland (9) counties with 59 total recorded by the Ohio Department of Health since Aug. 1, two less than in July.
This rise in hospital admissions prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to bump the three counties up from medium to high risk of infection.
COVID:Wayne, Ashland, Holmes COVID levels climb to medium on CDC map
They join 54 other counties in this category, which measures the risk of infection and the COVID-19 strain on local health care systems.
Despite this change, cases have either flatlined or dropped since early August, when Wayne, Richland and Ashland counties were at “medium.”
COVID-related deaths remain low, at nine, across the three counties since July 31, according to state health department records.
The remaining 31 counties, including Holmes, Stark, Portage and Summit, stay at a medium level, according to the CDC COVID-19 Dashboard. No counties are low.
What does a high community level mean?
For Wayne County Health Commissioner Nicholas Cascarelli, the decision to bump these counties up to a high risk level means the pandemic is still here.
More people are being hospitalized than in the previous few months, he said. That’s despite new cases not increasing.
“Most of those in the hospital are those 60 and older, but the majority of the younger admitted patients are not vaccinated,” Cascarelli said.
The two most at-risk groups are the elderly and unvaccinated, he said. The best protection against the virus is to get vaccinated and receive booster shots.
Cases down:Wayne, Holmes COVID cases fall; Ohio cases up 8.8%
“I recommend people wear masks when indoors, and it’s just that, it’s a recommendation,” Cascarelli said.
While this variant is not as deadly as the first variant that landed in 2020, he said, individuals can still get very sick and possibly die.
“At the very least (wearing a mask) can reduce the viral load that is sent to others who are at risk of getting seriously sick,” he said.
How are community levels determined?
To calculate the level of impact by county, the CDC considers how many new cases per 100,000 people occurred in the last seven days.
That is broken down into those counties with fewer than 200 new cases and those with more than 200 new cases.
According to CDC data, Wayne, Ashland and Richland counties had more than 200 new cases with 210, 224 and 262 cases, respectively.
New COVID-19 admissions to the hospital were more than 10 per 100,000 people in each county ranging from 12 to 15.5, another marker for the high-impact category.
Holmes County cases are below the 200 new infections per 100,000 people at nearly 73 new cases, keeping the county at medium risk of infection, according to the CDC.
New hospital admissions are above 10 at 12.2 per 100,000 people, showing an increase in hospitalizations across the county.
