From our news services
As of Monday (Aug. 9), Hyde County has four active cases of COVID-19, according to a press release from the Hyde County Health Department.
This is up from two cases as of July 30. The release did not say if the cases were on Ocracoke or the mainland.
COVID-19 cases are on the rise in North Carolina, and hospitalizations have increased for the Eastern Healthcare Preparedness Coalition, of which Hyde is a part, said Luana Gibbs, Hyde County Health director, in the release.
When viewing the hospital data, 31 patients were admitted over a 24 hour period on Aug. 7; 152 requiring ventilators and 357 additional ventilators available; 213 Intensive Care Unit beds in use, of 420 beds.
According to the Covid Data Tracker, Hyde County is at a moderate level of transmission. Gibbs said the county has tested 10.9% more people in the last seven days, but our positivity rate has reduced by 4.6%.
“Though this particular set of statistics is promising, the trend across the region and state is on the rise, and Hyde historically has run behind the rest of the state with its trends,” she said in the release.
In order that we all do our part to reduce the spread, remember to get vaccinated if you are 12 years of age or older, and continue to wear masks indoors with groups of people, she said.
Gibbs offered the following points to consider:
COVID-19 vaccine efficacy rates:
Pfizer 84% – 97%; mutations efficacy 39% – 90%
Moderna 86% – 90%; mutations efficacy (still being monitored)
Johnson & Johnson 72% – 86%; mutations efficacy 64% – 82%
Compare COVID vaccine efficacy to influenza vaccine efficacy, which was 39% in 2019-20 season.
Vaccines have been mandated in North Carolina for years, she said. Children, by law, are required to receive a certain number of doses of vaccine for a variety of diseases.
The only exceptions are those children who have medical or religious exemptions. If COVID vaccine becomes mandated, what makes that different from Diphtheria or Pertussis, Measles, or Rubella?
What can we do in Hyde County to protect each other?
“Get your vaccine,” Gibbs said. “If you refuse, at least wear a mask when around others with whom you do not live. We must not be responsible for loss of life or severe illness when there are things we can do to prevent that. People matter…Let’s do what Hyde County does, take care of one another.”
To make an appointment, please call the Hyde County Health Department at 252-926-4467 Monday through Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., or the Ocracoke Health Center at 252- 489-3622.
The following websites provide COVID-19 information:
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view
https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/BySection/Chapter_130A/GS_130A-152.pdf
https://www.healthline.com/health/flu-vaccine-effectiveness#benefits
https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/covid-19-vaccine-comparison
