Sep. 3-Another week of COVID-19 statistics show a continued decline in the number of cases and reinfections in Delaware County though the hospital admissions number remains high, and is likely the main reason Delco remains a moderate risk county in the estimation of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The most recent update of the Pennsylvania Department of Health weekend Early Warning Monitoring Dashboard shows Delco cases continuing a decline and also well below the state average in key metrics.
Delco saw 75 fewer cases than the week before, a total of 81 cases per 100,000 population and a positivity rate of 11.6%. The last two metrics were small declines.
Pennsylvania overall was a minus 882 cases, 106 new cases per 100,000 and 16.4% positivity, which were also small declines.
Nothing is homogenous and most counties saw declines with a few seeing increases in cases.
All the counties that touch Delco also remain moderate risk with metrics even lower than Delco's case rate and positivity, though not much.
The number of residents who are admitted to hospitals is part of that reason.
The most recent number from the CDC is 65 Delco admissions in the past week, though down from 69 a week earlier it isn't much of an improvement.
That's a rate of 11.5 per 100,000 population. It's the same rate as Chester, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties. Bucks County as well is part of that "regional rate."
Another sign might be the number of COVID tests given. Delco had 5,777, down about 500 in a week, but still a high number.
National look
The second omicron surge has been running for more than four months. It has contained several strains of the original omicron that swept through the population in late 2021 and early 2022.
The number of cases and hospitalizations remain about a fifth of the peak weeks of the initial omicron blitz.
BA.5 remains the most dominant strain of COVID since its parent, the original omicron.
The highly contagious strain is responsible for nearly 90% of all cases in the country, and roughly the same in the mid-Atlantic, according to CDC information.
Its expansion has hit a ceiling in the past few weeks. A couple of its cousins continue to circulate
BA.5 hit in earnest about five weeks ago and pushed up the national seven-day case average to 129,889 on July 16.
Since then, the case numbers have been sliding, with the latest figure Saturday of 83,939.
But it's a slow downturn, and health officials are concerned that an accurate picture of the spread isn't available due to widespread at-home testing and no testing.
Vaccinations
COVID vaccinations in Delaware County continue at a low rate that has been common since February. It's been common statewide.
The past week's statistics for Delco from the Pennsylvania Department of Health show:
-624 more residents fully vaccinated for a total of 414,375 over the entire 20-month episode of inoculation opportunities.
-641 more residents either with a first booster or a third full dose for the immunocompromised for a total of 198,459.
-376 more residents with either a second booster or a fourth full dose for the immunocompromised for a total of 40,049.
Typically the final category has the highest entry.
The county's population is almost 577,000, according to the 2020 census. No one who dies of any cause is purged from the vaccination rolls.
The county is ranked fourth in the state for "fully vaccinated" at 73.1% of the population. Medical experts have lamented that it has been many months for most who have gotten fully vaccinated, and the shots might not offer much protection anymore.
The ranking falls to 10th highest in the state for the first-booster/third-full-shot category, at 35% of the residents.
And the ranking drops another 13 spots for second-booster/fourth-full-shot category at 7% of residents. The state average is 6.5%.
Delco health department
The Delaware County Health Department issued this information in recent days:
The bivalent COVID vaccine booster shot is currently available in select pharmacies in the county. The bivalent booster shot consists of half of the original COVID vaccine formulation and half of a new formulation developed specifically to combat omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.
Check www.vaccines.gov for the most up-to-date appointment availability in the Delaware County area.
Bivalent booster shots are not yet available through the health department but are expected to be available at county COVID vaccination clinics soon.
Visit the department's website at delcopa.gov/vax for updates.
Bivalent booster shots will be available from both Moderna and Pfizer manufacturers. Patients are recommended to continue to receive the vaccine they started the series with.
If the vaccine product previously administered cannot be determined, is no longer available or contraindicated, other age-
appropriate COVID-19 vaccine product may be administered.
Those who originally received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can choose to continue with either Moderna or Pfizer and should proceed with that selection.
The first booster can be received two months after the primary immunization series and then the second booster four months later.
Age and immunocompromised status may play a part in determining eligibility.
Moderna bivalent booster vaccine will be available to those age 18-plus. Pfizer bivalent booster vaccine will be available to those age 12 plus.
Residents can contact the department wellness line at 484-276-2100 or DelcoWellness@co.delaware.pa.us.
(c)2022 Daily Times, Primos, Pa. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.