Fayette County Health Commissioner Kraig Humbaugh said the Lexington community has seen a leveling off of COVID cases this week. The health department director said that comes after about a month of declining cases. Asked if 60 cases a day this week should be concerning, Humbaugh said, “It’s hard to say if one week is a trend or not, but we have this week really not seen much change in the numbers of cases and in previous weeks we saw a steady decline. So, we’ll see what happens next week."
Humbaugh said the primary risk factor for death in those under age 60 remains being unvaccinated. Lexington reports more than 75% vaccination coverage in people 12 and older. But Humbaugh noted that doesn’t mean the community has herd immunity. The epidemiologist added there’s not enough vaccination to interrupt transmission.
Whether or not the central Kentucky community experiences a surge in cases over the winter months is also hard to predict. “Yeah, I think the jury is still out on that because when the weather gets colder, we tend to be inside and in closer proximity to each other. We know that that’s how the virus spreads is being close to somebody who is infectious,” explained Humbaugh.
The health department official said boosters are available for many people. He said community clinics will be held next week at Consolidated Baptist Church on Wednesday and the Senior Center on Friday. Full details about booster shot eligibility and availability can be found on the health department’s web site.
As far as trick-or-treating this weekend, Humbaugh noted young children should still be masked, even though the risk is less outside.
