BAY CITY, MI – COVID-19 cases are on the rise across Bay County, especially among unvaccinated residents because of the delta variant that makes its rounds. A health official said the best way to describe the variant is something akin to a forest fire.
“You have to think of the delta variant as a wildfire and unvaccinated people are a drought,” said Bay County Health Department Joel Strasz.
Strasz said this statement while providing an update to the Bay County Board of Commissioners during its regular meeting on Tuesday, September 14 on the situation of COVID-19 in Bay County. Simply put, Strasz said the delta variant is responsible for an increase in cases.
Strasz said Bay County had seen its lowest period of virus activity since the pandemic began during the months of June and July, with only one or two cases a day. However, he explained how the delta variant has drastically changed these figures and that the county sees what it estimates to be 18 to 25 cases a day.
“It’s four times more transmissible if not more so than previous strains of the virus and the original strain of the virus,” Strasz said. “As a result, we see an increase in cases and an increase in the number of serious cases. Many of these cases that are coming in and are currently active are due to transmission to the school. “
At this time, there is no countywide school mask mandate for Bay County, such as that of Genesee County, that requires masks for students in indoor settings for all students 5 years of age or older, except that one of the seven exceptions be met. There is no school that has had to close at this time in Bay County due to a new “permanence test” policy, according to Strasz, that allows students to identify themselves as close contact with someone who give COVID-19 a five-day rapid test regimen.
Students will be able to stay in school every day they give negative tests and should not be isolated.
According to the MI Safe Start Map, Bay County observed a test positivity rate of 10.9% for the virus in a time period of September 7-13, which has the county in a high-risk category. . The positivity rate of the test for 7 days was 5.5% on August 1 and 0.7% on July 1.
The state reports that Bay County recorded 250 weekly cases of COVID-19 from Sept. 7 to 13, compared to 101 in the previous week from Aug. 31 to Sept. 1. 6. On August 1, Bay County had only 30 cases in a period between July 26 and August 1. As of July 1, a total of seven cases per week were reported over a period of time from June 25 to July 1.
Strasz said the health department holds regular talks with the McLaren Bay region. According to these conversations, the virus and the delta variant appear to be hitting hard on the unvaccinated at this time.
“About nine out of ten people who are actually hospitalized and have serious cases are not vaccinated, so we will redouble our efforts as much as we can to vaccinate people, but we have reached the saturation point in that moment, ”Strasz said.
According to data provided by the state, 56.4% of Bay County residents have received two doses of the Pfizer or Modern vaccine or a single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as of Wednesday, September 15th. 61.4% of residents have started vaccination, which means they have received one or more doses of any vaccine.
Strasz said the Bay County Department of Health is redoubled its efforts to encourage more vaccinations, however, Strasz said Bay County is at a “saturation point” right now.
“We anticipate that as the variant grows, we’ll probably see an increase in the number of people who want to get vaccinated, maybe they’ve been sitting on a fence for one reason or another or maybe they just didn’t think vaccination was necessary, but it is. ”.
Strasz stressed the importance of vaccination in his presentation to the board of directors, while stressing that the Bay County Department of Health is trying to maintain the “normal life” of residents.
“All this, we are doing everything possible to try to mitigate the spread, but to keep life as normal as possible. At this time last year there was no vaccine, there were no standardized treatments, “Strasz said.” That has changed. The vaccine is available, vaccinated people are ten times less likely to get serious and end up in the hospital. ‘hospital, ten times less likely to die as a result of COVID-19 than a person who is not vaccinated.’
More from MLive
Woman known for her QAnon beliefs and in the midst of an ivermectin fire storm dies
Why are COVID-19 cases increasing, with 61% of eligible Michigan residents vaccinated?
The United States has a currency issue related to COVID: Here’s how you can help
Shiawassee County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Delegate Dies from COVID-19 Complications