Positivity rate down slightly; total cases hit one-week high

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WTVQ) – The number of new coronavirus cases remains high in Kentucky with Gov. Andy Beshear reporting 638 cases and six deaths Saturday.

The new cases pushed the state’s total since March to 38,930.

“Saturday’s COVID report unfortunately suggests this is going to be the highest week of total cases that we’ve ever had, though our positivity rate is going down a little bit,” said Beshear. “Folks, this thing is real. We are at war with it and we are going to have to be the strong, resilient and also patient Kentuckians that we are to make sure that we prevent loss of life, that we promote health and that we protect our children, that we should never, ever experiment with.”

Seventeen of the newly reported cases were from children age 5 and younger.

The Governor highlighted how more young Kentuckians are testing positive, especially in the hot spots, as the new school year approaches.

“When you look at how hard children are being hit now, 322 people under the age of 18 have tested positive since the beginning of this in Warren County alone.”

The six new deaths upped the total to 810 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

“That’s six other families who are suffering during this time,” said Gov. Beshear.

The deaths reported Saturday included two men from Jefferson County, ages 71 and 85; a 57-year-old woman from Jefferson County; a 74-year-old man from Graves County; a 72-year-old man from Nicholas County, and an 89-year-old man from McCracken County.

Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner of the Department for Public Health, said, “We all have crucial roles to play in the battle against the novel coronavirus. Now, more than ever, we have to renew our commitment to work together to protect ourselves, our friends, our families, and our communities. This week outpaced the number of new cases last week and, if we become complacent, our hard-fought containment of the coronavirus could slip from our grasp.”

“We have to take this coronavirus seriously,” Dr. Stack said. “Every person who avoids crowds, wears a face covering in public, maintains a social distance of at least six feet, and frequently washes their hands makes essential and invaluable contributions to our ability to fight this pandemic. If we all do these things consistently, we can suppress COVID-19 enough to more safely open schools and engage in many activities so important to our lives.”

As of Saturday, at least 754,985 tests had been administered.

The COVID-19 testing positive rate, based on a seven-day rolling average, taking into account total positive tests reported by laboratories divided by total tests reported by labs, stood at 5.45%. The number of Kentuckians who have recovered stood at 9,091.

For information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here.