Local COVID-19 numbers on rise
May 20—Joplin's number of COVID-19 cases has been edging up the past few days after several weeks with only a handful of cases at a time.
There were 57 reported cases on the Joplin COVID-19 dashboard for Wednesday. The dashboard listed only that two people from Joplin were hospitalized locally with COVID-19 on Wednesday.
"In the last day, there were seven cases reported, but the overall trend is that we are experiencing a bit of uptick in cases," said Ryan Talken, director of the Joplin Health Department. "We are averaging a little over seven cases per day now. We were down as low as .5 cases per day on a seven-day average."
The average daily count has been rising slowly since early April, but the total has risen by several cases a day in the last week.
Rising case numbers correspond to wastewater testing that has shown an increase in the viral load detected in wastewater at Joplin and Carthage sewage treatment plants.
Case numbers have been climbing elsewhere in the U.S. such as on the East Coast and in Texas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. After a spike across the country in December and January, cases dropped sharply in February and March down to around 11,000 in mid-March. Now the daily count is at about 130,000 new cases.
"The uptick is not just happening here, it's happening across the state and the world," Talken said. "People are getting together again, so there is extra chance for exposure to and a waning of immunity from earlier cases and vaccinations. Some of the new variants have the ability to be more infectious, and they also are able to work around the immunities from the earlier strains."
Jessica Liberty, infection prevention and control manager with Freeman Health System, said the current omicron variants are difficult to distinguish from colds and allergies.
"We know that with each variant we have seen the progression of illness become milder and milder. Now we are at a place in the nation and the community where we can test at home. We want to continue to reduce the spread, so it's not unreasonable to test, and it's easy to obtain a test."
Free tests that were mailed by the government are reliable, she said, as are those that can be purchased in pharmacies.
"Those free tests are an antigen test," she said. "Antigen tests are sensitive if you have symptoms.
"We know that COVID-19 is very contagious, but an at-home test is easy. If you're in doubt about whether it's a cold or allergy or COVID, send somebody to the pharmacy to get a test and in the meantime stay home. Omicron is still here, but it is mild and is not causing the illness and death like the delta (variant)," she said.
Mercy Hospital Joplin spokesman Jordan Larimore said hospital admissions for COVID-19 have been low there lately. "We're hopeful that vaccines will keep cases from becoming hospitalizations," he said. Tests for the virus are available at the hospital with a doctor's order.
Both Mercy and Freeman have quit giving vaccinations because they are readily available at pharmacies, the hospital representatives said.
The hospital representatives and the health department director suggest that people, especially those who are immunocompromised, take precautions to keep from contracting or spreading the easily transmissable virus.
"We encourage people to remain vigilant. If you are sick, you need to stay home," Talken said. "If you have COVID, we encourage people let people they've been around to know they might have been exposed. For the immunocompromised, we encourage them to avoid crowds and wash their hands frequently. Those are universal precautions, not just for COVID, but for all diseases that are infectious, especially if you are at increased risk."
People who choose can still wear masks, the health officials said.
Vaccines are still available from the Joplin Health Department. Call 417-623-6122 for information about them.
