(Updated on 5/16/2022) Hospitalizations for COVID-19 remain low in Fairfax County, but they have started to climb in recent weeks as the latest surge in the disease continues.
An estimated 52 new residents were admitted to a hospital with COVID-19 last week through Friday (May 6), a 54.2% increase from the previous seven days, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The county has seen 4.6 new admissions per 100,000 people in the past seven days, and 1.8% of staffed, inpatient hospital beds are currently being used by Covid patients. Both of those numbers fall well within the threshold for a “low” level of COVID-19, but with the county reporting over 200 new cases per 100,000 residents, the CDC increased its community level to “medium” on Thursday (May 5).
The Fairfax Health District, including the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church, added 300 cases today (Monday), bringing its seven-day average up to 450.7 cases — the highest it has been since Feb. 6 (456 cases), according to the Virginia Department of Health.
The district has recorded 190,109 COVID-19 cases, 4,493 hospitalizations, and 1,512 deaths so far in the pandemic. The most recent confirmed death came on April 16.
Attributing the current surge of coronavirus cases to the spread of highly contagious omicron subvariants, Fairfax County Health Department officials said in a blog post on Friday that testing and vaccinations have become especially critical as mask-wearing, social distancing, and other mitigation measures have largely fallen by the wayside.
“We all want COVID-19 to be over; but unfortunately, we are not seeing that,” Fairfax County Director of Epidemiology and Population Health Dr. Benjamin Schwartz said in a statement. “Even if you think your symptoms may be due to allergies, getting tested is important to make sure it’s not really COVID-19.”
Averaging 2,464 encounters as of May 5, the Fairfax Health District’s testing positivity rate has quadrupled over the past month, climbing from 3.8% on April 4 to 13.7%. The last time the positivity rate hit that mark was Jan. 30, though more than 4,500 people were getting tested at that time.
More than 900,000 district residents — 900,815 people, to be exact — have gotten fully vaccinated. That constitutes 76.1% of the population, including 84.2% of people 18 and older.
There are 990,491 residents, or 83.7%, who have received at least one vaccine dose, including:
- 92.4% of adults
- 98.6% of 16-17 year olds
- 94.4% of 12-15 year olds
- 59.3% of 5-11 year olds
According to the county health department, a total of 487,809 residents have gotten a booster or third shot, ranging from 30.2% of adolescents aged 12-15 to 80.7% of people aged 75-84.
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