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63 positive COVID-19 cases, 5 deaths reported
Clay County now has 64 confirmed COVID-19 cases and five deaths reported to the Indiana State Department of Health. Local health officials have corrected the total to 63, advising one case has was duplicated at the state level. The fifth death in Clay County due to COVID-19 (also a correction of state data) came as a result of a patient who has been hospitalized for quite a while.
State health officials advised this week the recent “uptick of overall positive COVID-19 cases” continues to impact Hoosiers’ lives.
On Wednesday, during Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb’s weekly press conference, State Health Commissioner Kristina Box announced the summer carnival planned at the Indiana State Fairgrounds was called off entirely due to COVID-19. But the 4-H events planned for the fairgrounds around the state were still expected to go on.
In Clay County, officials with the Clay County 4-H Fair announced Thursday the event would be closed to the public this year. 4-H members will be mailed armbands that will allow them to enter the fair, and reporters and photographers will receive media passes.
Holcomb announced last week that Indiana would not move forward with Stage 5 of the reopening plan, instead opting for a more cautious Stage 4.5, which will remain in effect another week.
“Herd immunity” - a time when the resistance to the spread of a contagious disease within the population results if a sufficiently high proportion of individuals are immune to the disease - has failed in many countries where it was attempted, and is not expected in Indiana in the near future.
At this time, during the current information available about the COVID-19 pandemic, Box said antibodies from having COVID-19 can potentially disappear, making a person vulnerable again even after recovery.
Recent celebrations for the 4th of July have raised concern for many Indiana residents who attended cookouts, parties, camping trips, and other types of events during the holiday, and now discover someone they know is COVID-19 positive.
Clay County Health Nurse Kim Hyatt advises people to stay serious about protecting their health and that of their family and friends by practicing social distancing, continuing good hygiene, and wearing a face covering to limit exposure to the disease.
“We need people to continue to do what we all have been told to do,” said Hyatt, adding that it is important to stay home, contact their physician, and self-isolate if a person begins to feel ill. “Keep washing those hands.”
On Thursday, the Indiana State Department of Health reported 6,471 new tests performed in 24 hours (July 7-8), with 521 new positive results, and seven new deaths reported throughout the state.
In the Wabash Valley, the ISDH data shows Clay County is ranked fourth for COVID-19 positive cases when considering the eight counties in District 7.
Much of the current COVID-19 Data for the eight counties have slightly changed for at least a week, including:
• VIGO - 240 Positive Cases among the 6,974 tested, with eight deaths.
• GREENE - 191 Positive Cases among the 2,1211 tested, with 32 deaths.
• PUTNAM - 170 Positive Cases among the 2,796 tested, with eight deaths.
• CLAY - 63 Positive Cases among the 1,719 tested, with five deaths (data corrected locally).
• OWEN - 51 Positive Cases among the 1,678 tested, with one death.
• SULLIVAN - 45 Positive Cases among the 1,569 tested, with one death.
• PARKE - 24 Positive Cases among the 868 tested, with no deaths reported.
• VERMILLION - 17 Positive Cases among the 835 tested, with no deaths reported.
District 7 shows a positive COVID-19 test rate at 4.3 percent, with the total of residents tested at 18,664 (171 new test results in the past 24 hours) and confirmation of 802 cases (11 new cases as of July 8).
The ISDH reports overall 49,575 positive cases among the 6.7 million Indiana residents, with 542,292 residents tested, and 2,546 deaths reported. The state’s data suggests the increasing number of Indiana residents tested has lowered the overall percent of Indiana residents, which is confirmed positive as of July 2 to 9.1 percent. (The data is provisional, reflecting only the information published to the ISDH.)
Indiana residents whose physician listed their death with COVID-19 as a contributing cause to a total of 193: Deaths diagnosed by medical staff based on X-rays, scans, and other clinical symptoms with the absence of a COVID-19 test.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US), there are 3,047,671 cases reported in the United States, with 132,056 deaths.
The World Health Organization lists COVID-19 in 216 countries, areas, or territories with confirmed cases reported at 11,874,226 and confirmed deaths at 545,481.
#MaskUpHoosiers
A new #MaskUpHoosiers campaign encourages Hoosiers to wear masks in public spaces. Gov. Eric Holcomb recommends mask-wearing “in the strongest terms possible” and recently said, “it’s about getting through this in the safest way. I believe in Hoosiers doing the right thing. That’s one aspect where we have acted appropriately.”
State Health Commissioner Dr. Kristina Box has previously noted during a press conference on the state’s COVID-19 efforts that mandating masks be worn can sometimes have negative results, with more people not wearing them solely because of the mandate.