County COVID
Cases See-Saw
By CHRYSTAL SAVAGE • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com
COOPERSTOWN – After increases in new reported cases, active cases and hospitalizations categories yesterday – as compared to the totals of the previous day – all three categories have again dropped.
This dip in totals, however, still remains higher than the totals reported on Jan. 10 – the “low” before yesterday’s increases.
Deaths have remained at zero since the two deaths reported on Jan. 7, making the total COVID-19 related fatalities in the county this year three and to-date 21.
Any true improvement in transmission rates has yet to be seen, as many community members await their inoculation eligibility.
“It is safe to assume cases are still going up,” County Public Health Director Heidi Bond said. “It is likely a delay in labs or reporting that has contributed to the decline.”
The increase in active cases accompanies an inoculation expansion, however, public health officials feel confident that remaining diligent and patient will put our community in the home stretch, so to speak, in terms of getting the COVID-19 pandemic under control once and for all.
There is a need to tweek the procedure for vaccination sign ups. The current method requires a 24/7 vigil monitoring the County Health Department web site. If you get to the site say 15 minutes after they re-open the vaccination sign up you are too late and must wait until they reopen at a later undetermined date. Of course this could lead to someone never getting vaccinated as each new group comes in for eligibility and manages to get to the head of the queue. Suggest that if they have all the eligibility sign ups in their data base they simply contact the individuals in order of sign-up (or by age starting with oldest first) and give them 24 hrs to make an appointment. If they don’t make an appointment they go to the end of the queue but stay eligible and in front even when a new category (say 2a) is authorized by the State Health Department. I understand that supplies are short but making the system fairer will ensure the most at risk people will all get vaccinated and not left behind.
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