A nonprofit publication of the Kentucky Center for Public Service Journalism

More COVID cases statewide, 167 deaths in last week, 239 in hospital; ‘yellow’ counties down to three


By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today

Last week the number of new cases of COVID-19 deaths, hospitalizations, and the positivity rate all saw increases, which is a continuing trend, according to the latest weekly report from the Kentucky Department for Public Health.

The May 9 report shows there were 3,957 new cases of COVID during the past week. That compares to 3,394 during the previous week and 2,997 two weeks ago. There have now been a total of 1,325,726 cases in the state since the first one was reported on March 6, 2020.

The top ten counties in terms of new cases reported last week were Jefferson (1,585), Fayette (425), Hardin (114), Kenton (95), Boone (85), Campbell (77), Madison (71), Oldham (65), Bullitt (64) and Warren (59).

There were 167 new deaths during the past week, which is a rise from 156 the previous week and 116 in the April 25 report. This brings Kentucky’s pandemic total to 15,734.
The current hospital census shows 239 people are hospitalized due to COVID in the state. Of them, 22 are in the ICU and 13 are on a ventilator. Two weeks ago, those figures stood at 166 in the hospital, 24 in the ICU and 8 on a ventilator.

Kentucky’s positivity rate, determined by dividing the total number of tests by those that were positive, has now risen to 7.19%, according to the latest report.  By comparison, on April 25 it stood at 4.35% and on April 4 it was only 1.97%.

About the only good number that is rising this week is the number of counties that are in the “green,” meaning a low COVID-19 community level, according to the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recently revamped designations for spread of the disease. Last week, four counties were “yellow,” indicating a medium community level: Bourbon, Henderson, Nicholas and Union.

This week, the number of yellow counties is down to three: Henderson, McCracken and Union. The remaining 117 counties are green. Just two weeks ago, however, every Kentucky county was in the green category.

The CDC guidance for yellow counties includes urging residents to consider universal mask use in indoor public settings and to follow isolation and quarantine guidance, including getting tested if exposed to someone with COVID or if showing symptoms.

For the latest information on the COVID-19 pandemic in Kentucky and more guidance, go to the Department for Public Health’s website, at http://kycovid19.ky.gov/.


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