Dare County reports lowest number of weekly COVID-19 cases since September, per Tuesday update

Dare County released the following update for Tuesday, March 2, which provides details on recent Coronavirus cases, current and future vaccine allotments, and more COVID-19 information.

Dare County COVID-19 Case Update

We are pleased to report Dare County’s COVID-19 data continues to trend in the right direction. Specifically, there were only 30 new positive cases last week. This is the lowest it has been since the last week of September. Additionally, the percent of positive tests to total tests for this past week decreased from 8.2% to 7.7%. While these numbers are looking much better, we still need to remain vigilant. We have seen a recent rise in the number of cases under the age of 17. Ten out of the 30 new cases last week were between the ages of 1 and 17. Several cases were linked to spread between siblings and 6 cases were linked to sports or social gatherings. Please continue to do what we know works to control the spread by following the 3Ws: Wear a face covering, wait 6 ft apart and wash your hands frequently or use hand sanitizer.

Since our last report on 2/23, there have been 32 new COVID-19 cases. Of these 32 new cases:

• 26 (86%) are symptomatic
• 22 (74%) acquired the virus by direct contact with an individual or individuals who were positive for COVID-19.

The total COVID-19 positive case count in Dare County is 2,784, of which there are 23 active cases among residents of Dare County. Currently, 1 resident is hospitalized due to complications from COVID-19. Sadly, 1 resident death was reported last week. Our thoughts are with the family and friends who have lost their loved one.

COVID-19 Vaccine

We have good news to share this week regarding our vaccine allocation from the state. Our weekly allocation has been increased to 500 first doses per week for the next 3 weeks. Additionally, we have been approved for an extra 500 first doses this week and 1500 first doses next week in response to additional special event requests we submitted. With this increase in allocation we have successfully been able to offer appointments to those aged 65 and over who were on our waiting list and we are now ready to move to Phase 3, Essential Workers.

Anyone who is an Essential Worker may now go to our website at www.darenc.com/covidvaccine to complete the vaccination request form. Staff will then call you to schedule an appointment, as appointments are available. Phase 3 Essential Workers as defined by the state are those who work in critical manufacturing, education, essential goods (including grocery stores, pharmacies, food service and gas stations), government and community service organizations, churches, public health, public safety and transportation.

Over the past 8 weeks we have administered 8,398 first doses of COVID-19 vaccines and 5,741 second doses. Over the next 2 weeks we will administer an additional 3,250 first doses and 1,100 second doses.

Key Metrics

Each week we review the 4 key metrics associated with disease investigation and surveillance. The metrics are:

• Number of Tests
• Confirmed Cases
• Positive Tests as a Percent of Total Tests
• COVID Like Illness Surveillance

This past week there were 389 COVID-19 diagnostic tests reported in Dare County. This brings the total number of tests performed since early March of last year to 33,626.  There were 30 positive cases between February 22 and February 28. The percent of positive tests to overall tests in Dare County since we started testing in March 2020 remained the same as last week at 8.27%. The percent of positive tests to total tests for the past week decreased to 7.7%. Syndromic surveillance of individuals presenting with COVID like symptoms to the emergency department and urgent care centers, showed low levels of activity. These graphs can be found on the dare county website at www.darenc.com/covid19.

Communications and Information Sharing

Dare County DHHS has an established schedule of communication to share information regarding COVID-19. Every Tuesday, a written update and a video update which includes an overview of the previous week’s COVID-19 key metrics is issued. Additional updates will be released as needed. All released videos and written updates can be found on our website, DHHS facebook page, Dare County Twitter page, and Dare Emergency Management Twitter page. If you would like to receive these updates directly to your email, please sign up to receive our enotifications.

New positive cases are updated on the dashboard on our website and shared on the DHHS facebook page when we receive them. To find the most up-to-date information on COVID-19 cases in Dare County visit www.darenc.com/covid19. State COVID-19 data is available at https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/dashboard.

Contact Us

We encourage you to stay informed by visiting www.darenc.com/covid19 or by visiting the CDC or NC DHHS websites. If you have specific needs or questions you may also call the Dare County COVID-19 call center open Monday-Friday from 8:30 to 5:00 at 252-475-5008.