For the first time since mid-June, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention labeled Forsyth as a county with medium — rather than high — levels of COVID-19.
Before Thursday’s CDC update, Forsyth had been considered in the high category for 13 consecutive weeks, as well as 16 of the previous 18 weeks.
Meanwhile, the Forsyth County Department of Public Health is temporarily out of the Moderna bivalent booster vaccine, but still has Pfizer available. Appointments remain required.
The bivalent COVID-19 vaccine is designed to protect people from the omicron variant and its most common BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, as well as the original COVID strain.
The COVID-19 community level is determined by looking at hospital beds being used, hospital admissions and the total number of new COVID-19 cases in an area.
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The most improvement in Forsyth was found in the new case count.
Forsyth reported 136 new cases per 100,000 people, compared with 205 and 249 in the previous two reports.
The rate of new COVID-related hospital admissions per 100,000 people was at 12.2, compared with 14.3 and 11.5 the previous two reports.
Also, 3.5% of staffed inpatient beds are being used by COVID-19 patients, compared with 3.8% and 3.9% the previous weeks.
The CDC recommends that people who live in counties with the highest levels wear masks in indoor public spaces, as well as on public transportation, regardless of vaccination status. In medium-level communities, residents are advised to talk to health care providers about whether they need to wear a mask and take other precautions.
Forsyth health director Joshua Swift said there were 22 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the county as of Thursday. That’s down from 27 on Sept. 29.
Alleghany, Davie and Yadkin are the only counties in the Triad and Northwest N.C. considered to have high levels of COVID-19.
Stokes County shifted from high to medium, joining Surry at that level. Wilkes County dropped from medium to low community levels.
Remaining at low levels are Alamance, Ashe, Davidson, Guilford, Randolph, Rockingham and Watauga.
Overall, there are 10 N.C. counties in the high category, compared with 13 and 22 in the previous two reports.
Forsyth deaths up, case count down
An additional 17 COVID-19-related deaths were reported in Forsyth County this week, the highest count in the state’s weekly report since the height of the omicron surge in mid-February.
N.C. Department of Health and Human Services cautions that its weekly update totals are subject to revision, sometimes factoring in cases and deaths that occurred weeks or months ago but were recently confirmed as COVID-19 related.
Forsyth’s COVID-19 death toll stands at 894 since mid-March 2020. The update covered the week that ended Oct. 1.
The last time the Forsyth weekly death count was as high as 17 was during the week that ended Feb. 19, 2022.
The county reported a record 32 COVID-related deaths in the week that ended Feb. 12, 2022.
North Carolina as a whole saw a similar surge in COVID-19 related deaths last week, with 327 reported for a total of 26,852 since the onset of the pandemic.
DHHS reported Forsyth had 495 cases last week — the lowest weekly count since 373 in the week that ended April 23.
Of the new reported cases, DHHS said 15.5%, or 95, were people who have had COVID-19 previously but were re-infected with an omicron subvariant.
Forsyth has recorded 114,352 cases of COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic in mid-March 2020.
Since mid-May, the number of new COVID-19 cases has been in the 700 to 1,200 range weekly.
Forsyth health director Joshua Swift and Novant Health infectious diseases expert Dr. David Priest have stressed that the DHHS weekly case totals include only laboratory confirmed cases and don’t include most people who determine they are positive with an at-home test.
N.C. vaccine benefits
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported Friday that the Biden administration’s vaccination program is linked to more than 650,000 fewer COVID-19 hospitalizations and more than 300,000 fewer deaths among seniors and other Americans enrolled in Medicare.
In North Carolina, that includes 20,600 fewer COVID-19 hospitalizations and 10,800 fewer deaths.
The study, conducted by researchers with HHS’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, underscores the importance of Americans — particularly seniors and others at high-risk of serious outcomes — getting an updated COVID-19 vaccine this fall.
“This report reaffirms what we have said all along: COVID-19 vaccines save lives and prevent hospitalizations,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said.
“We now have updated COVID vaccines designed to protect you against the omicron strain of COVID that makes up almost all COVID cases in the U.S.
“Over 90 percent of Americans live within five miles of where they can access these vaccines for free.”
The report also found that in addition to the reductions in severe COVID-19 health outcomes, reductions in COVID-19 hospitalizations were associated with savings of more than $16 billion in direct medical costs.
