The Jefferson County Health Department has reported eight more COVID-19-related deaths, bringing the total number of county residents who have died from the virus to 296 since the pandemic began.
Those eight deaths include a man in his 30s, a man in his 50s, a man in his 70s, two women in their 80s and three women in their 90s. Two of the eight deaths are connected to long-term care facilities, according to the Health Department.
The county has seen a total of 91 deaths connected to long-term care facilities since the start of the pandemic.
Five of the deaths were reported from Sept. 12-18 and three were reported since Sept. 19, according to the Health Department.
During the week of Sept. 12 to Sept. 18, the county had 770 new COVID-19 cases, which was up from last week when 729 cases were reported.
Of those 770 cases, 81.7 percent was among unvaccinated people, and 18.3 percent were breakthrough cases, meaning cases among those who had been vaccinated.
As of Wednesday (Sept. 22), the county had seen a total of 30,160 coronavirus cases since the first ones were reported in March 2020.
“Our weekly case counts for both the whole population and the youth population continue to climb,” Health Department epidemiologist Sara Wilton said. “Cases in the 0-19 group again represent the highest percent increase in cases this week. There were 251 total new cases for the 0-19 group, which is the highest weekly case count we have seen so far for this group. (During the prior week), the weekly case count in 0–19-year-olds was 237 cases and prior to that the highest case rate we saw in this age group was 217 cases back in November 2020 during our surge.”
For a ninth consecutive week, the county is in the red status on the Health Department’s COVID-19 warning system. Red is the highest level on the four-color system and indicates high transmission of the virus in the community.
The main indicator of the color status is the total number of cases in a seven-day period per 100,000 people.
The number of cases per 100,000 people for week 37 – Sept. 12 to Sept. 18 – was 342.22, which was up from the previous week when there were 324 new cases.
A total of 13.3 percent of COVID-19 tests among Jefferson Countians during the week of Sept. 12-18 was positive. That is down from the prior week, which had 13.7 percent of people testing positive.
“The percent positivity has been hovering around the 12-15 percent range for the last seven weeks,” Wilton said.
COVID infusion treatments Mercy Jefferson
Mercy Jefferson in Crystal City will provide space for monoclonal antibody (mAb) infusion treatments for COVID-19 for another 30 days.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services entered into a contract with SLS in Galveston, Texas, in August to provide the treatments for 30 days at six sites, including Mercy Jefferson, and the DHSS has extended all the treatment sites for another 30 days.
Mercy Jefferson in Crystal City is providing space on the hospital property for the state to administer the infusion program, said Dr. Karthik Iyer, Mercy Jefferson Chief Medical Officer and ICU medical director.
As of Sept. 21, a total of 194 people had received the treatment at the hospital, he said.
“Unfortunately, we don't get the data as to how many of those patients ended up in the hospital, but it would be safe to assume a vast majority of them likely didn't get hospitalized,” he said.
Monoclonal antibodies are laboratory-made proteins that mimic the immune system’s ability to fight off harmful viruses like the coronavirus, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The monoclonal antibody treatment is authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The treatment, also known as Regen-COV, can help prevent people from being admitted into the hospital because of COVID-19.
The whole purpose of treatment is to prevent hospitalization and death, Iyer said.
Those with high risk conditions, including people older than 65, those with high BMI, pregnant women and those with chronic conditions are at the top of the list to receive the infusion treatment.
“It's only meant for patients with mild to moderate symptoms who can benefit, and, of course, patients who have been exposed, but are still considered high risk,” he said. “Two months ago, they all had to travel several miles north to the city to get this.”
Iyer said those who do qualify for the treatment need to speak with their primary care doctor about receiving the treatment. People also may call 660-829-6647, which is a state referral number for the treatment.
“Monoclonal antibody treatments have been successful for many COVID-19 patients and have allowed us to lessen the strain on Missouri’s health care systems,” Gov. Mike Parson said. However, this treatment is not a replacement for the vaccine. Encouraging more Missourians to choose vaccination is still the most effective path for us to move past COVID-19.”
Vaccines
Health officials urge residents to take get the vaccine and to take other steps to limit the spread of the virus, including wearing masks and social distancing.
Overall, 36.28 percent of Jefferson County residents was vaccinated as of Wednesday, up slightly from the week before, when 35.96 percent was vaccinated, according to the Health Department.
“Within the 10–19-year-old age group, 22.52 percent have been fully vaccinated,” Wilton said.
People may sign up for a vaccine appointment through the Health Department by going to the state vaccine Navigator website at covidvaccine.mo.gov/navigator. Or they may call 877-435-8411.
Or, to find another local vaccine site, visit vaccinefinder.org.
