Delta variant fueling uptick of Covid-19 cases in Olmsted County

Olmsted County’s Covid-19 numbers continue to trend in the wrong direction, as the county reports its highest case rates in months.

The county, according to the CDC, has recorded 187 new cases of Covid over the past seven days; that is the equivalent of 118 cases per 100,000 people, classifying the county as an area with “high community transmission.”

The resurgence of the virus has been tied to the more contagious delta variant — which health officials say now accounts for 85 percent of new cases in the state. Prior to the spread of the new variant, Olmsted County had been registering as little as 15-20 new cases per week.

To turn the curve back downward, the county has issued guidance encouraging community members and visitors to wear face coverings in public indoor settings, regardless of their vaccination status.

Olmsted County Public Health is also urging residents who are not yet vaccinated — or those who have not completed their second dose — to get the shot. While new evidence suggests that vaccinated people with breakthrough infections can spread the delta variant, completing both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine does still offer significant protection against the virus and dramatically reduces hospitalizations and death.

A ‘rough few weeks ahead’

In the past month, hospitalizations from Covid have more than tripled, though deaths have remained stable. Here in Olmsted County, there were 25 new hospital admissions last week, a 20 percent week-to-week increase.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Dr. John O’Horo, an infectious disease expert at Mayo Clinic, said he expects a “rough few weeks ahead with the delta surge.” He added, however, that he believes this fourth wave will be less severe in terms of hospitalizations due to the effectiveness of vaccines.

More than 96,000 people 12 and over have been fully vaccinated in Olmsted County, which equates to 73 percent of those eligible. (Meantime, Rochester proper is believed to have one of the highest vaccination rates in the U.S.)

Dr. O’Horo said vaccinations are particularly important now to protect those not currently able to get the vaccine, including those under the age of 12, who are set to return to school in the coming weeks. The vaccines, he added, can also help stymie the spread of future variants of Covid.

“The more people we see vaccinated, the less of an opportunity there will be for these kinds of variants to emerge,” said Dr. O’Horo. “We'll have to remain vigilant for new variants that do require additional measures and require additional vaccines. But at this point in time, the real thing to take away from this is that vaccines are a way to prevent complications [and] to reduce the susceptibility of communities and individuals to these variants.”

Mayo is among a number of hospitals nationwide that have introduced some form of a vaccine requirement. Mayo says since introducing the policy — which requires staff to get vaccinated or participate in education training — daily staff vaccination rates have more than doubled.

Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.

Cover image: Color map showing that Olmsted County has moved into the category of “high community transmission” / via the CDC