Two deaths reported as ‘high’ transmission ranking among Ohio counties remains

Lawrence County continues to show improvements in COVID-19 numbers, but remains listed as “High” for transmission in new cases of the virus.

The county now ranks third in the state for new cases of the virus, after spending several weeks at the highest in the state.

According to figures from the Lawrence County Health Department, there were 49 new cases of COVID-19 from March 3-10 in the county, eight hospitalizations and two deaths from the virus.

The number of cases fell by more than half compared to the previous week, when 125 new cases were reported from Feb. 24-March 3.

This continues a marked decline over the past month. There were 193 new cases reported from Feb. 17-24, 309 cases from Feb. 10-17 and 601 cases from Jan. 27-Feb. 3. (The department didn’t release figures for Feb. 3-10).

While new cases are falling, the county is still in the red classification for high transmission from the U.S Centers for Disease Control and has a positivity rate of 33 percent according to the Ohio Department of Health.

According to the Ohio Department of Health, 41.49 percent of the population in Lawrence County is fully vaccinated. Using the CDC’s numbers, 51.5 percent is fully vaccinated.

The county health department continues to offer COVID-19 vaccination clinics, providing initial doses and booster shots. Vaccines are also available at most pharmacies. For more information, call 740-532-3962.