Kentucky's COVID-19 test positivity rate is now a record 21%, Gov. Andy Beshear announced Monday, as the omicron variant drives cases into new territory.
The positivity rate is a number that can help predict COVID-19 trends and is based on a seven-day average. The previous record was 14%.
The state saw almost 30,000 new cases last week, Beshear said, doubling the case total from the week prior. On Dec. 30, the state set a new daily record for cases with 6,441 reported, beating the prior record of 5,742.
"We went from being in a relative plateau to the second highest week of reported cases since the start of the pandemic, surpassed only by the week of Aug. 30 when the delta variant was hitting us at its peak," Beshear said. "Omicron has not only come to the commonwealth, it has hit us harder in terms of escalation of cases than anything we have seen to date."
The new omicron variant accounts for about 80% of new cases, Beshear said. Dr. Steven Stack, Kentucky's public health commissioner, said "this is really striking, how much this virus has spread" and compared omicron to measles.
"Measles is the most contagious known viral infection on the planet Earth for a very long time," Stack said. "And the only comparison that we can make for omicron that seems even remotely apropos is that it's like measles."
Background:Louisville health leaders report 'alarming' jump in COVID-19 cases, positivity rate record
Dr. Jason Smith, the chief medical officer of U of L Health, said earlier Monday that the system now has 121 COVID-19 patients, up from the mid-70s shortly before Christmas and 35 just before Thanksgiving. The new variant, omicron, is likely the culprit in the increase, he added.
At the end of last week, 90% of hospital patients were unvaccinated. Most cases of severe illness are still in the unvaccinated, he said.
Smith said he thinks Louisville can expect to see a "significant rise in a number of cases" over the next four to six weeks with a "rapid" rise in the next couple of weeks before reaching a plateau and then a drop.
"With a bit of luck, as long as we can keep things going for the next six weeks or so," he said, "we will probably move through this wave just like we have the other waves."
Norton Healthcare reported 207 COVID-19 patients hospitalized Sunday compared to 176 last week, with pediatric admissions also rising.
Smith said a challenge facing U of L's system right now is the about 400 staff members who are off either because they tested positive or are quarantined waiting for results, he said. Meanwhile, other staff need to pick up extra shifts.
"That's impacting our overall care and the abilities that we have as health care system," he said.
Cases of COVID-19 in children are rising, though most do not require hospitalization, said Dr. Kris Bryant, an infectious diseases pediatrician with Norton Children's Hospital and U of L Health.
"We are definitely seeing a spike right now," Bryant said in an interview.
As of Monday, Norton Children's had 18 kids with COVID-19 in the hospital including about three who were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for COVID-19.
However, the rest were seriously ill enough with COVID-19 to be admitted and four are in intensive care, Bryant said. Ages ranged from an infant several days old to teens 17 or 18, she said.
Last week Norton Children's had about 12 children hospitalized with COVID-19.
Some of the older teens are experiencing the most serious respiratory problems with nearly all unvaccinated.
"Kids hospitalized in general are kids not vaccinated," she said.
At the University of Kentucky Children's Hospital, eight children were hospitalized Monday with COVID-19, a spokeswoman said.
More:First case of omicron variant of COVID-19 reported in Kentucky, Gov. Beshear says
While Bryant said the increase is of concern, she's not ready to call it a surge in hospitalizations that have struck children's hospitals in some other states.
"I think it's too early to say," she said. "We're just going to have to watch the numbers over the next couple of days."
But Bryant said Norton Healthcare, which offers COVID-19 testing at sites throughout the area, has seen a sharp increase in the number of children testing positive.
In December, about 14% of about 13,500 children tested positive for COVID-19, a rate higher than the previous two months.
In the first few days of January alone, 29% of the 727 children tested have been positive for COVID-19, Bryant said.
While Norton doesn't know yet whether a majority of results are for the newer, more contagious omicron variant, "public health experts are telling us that omicron is much more infectious than delta," Bryant said.
The most important thing parents can do is to ensure their children 5 or older get vaccinated against COVID-19, Bryant said.
With about 47% of Kentucky children 12-14 having received at least a first dose of vaccine and 16% of those 5-11 vaccinated, "We have a lot of kids at risk to get infected," she said.
Right before the New Year holiday, Louisville health officials reported a spike in cases and two record positivity rates — 20% one day and 22% the next.
The delta variant was driving COVID-19 cases, health department director Dr. Sarah Moyer said. But last week, omicron took over, according to testing results.
Beshear said it's not clear when omicron will peak in Kentucky, adding that factors such as timing of the first case and vaccination will impact that.
"I think it's our job to do everything we can to make it peak as early as we can by getting vaccinated and wearing masks."
Reach health reporter Sarah Ladd at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @ladd_sarah.
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