OSDH: Rate of new COVID-19 cases climbs by nearly 14% compared to previous week – Enid News & Eagle

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ENID, Okla. — Oklahoma saw a 13.61% increase in the number of new COVID-19 cases as compared to the previous week, according to weekly statistics released Friday evening by the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

Cumulative cases were counted from May 15-21, according to OSDH, which also reported a slight increase, 3.85%, in those recovered during the week and a 16.7% decrease in the number of deaths, as compared to May 8-14.

Overall, as of Saturday’s OSDH daily report, there are 5,960 Oklahomans officially confirmed to have tested positive for the virus, which has caused a global pandemic and financial crises worldwide. The number of new cases rose by 1.9%, or 111, as compared to 5,849 listed on Friday’s OSDH report.

Kingfisher recorded two more cases, as did the city of Okarche, half of which is in Canadian County, which saw an increase of one case, according to Saturday’s OSDH report. Other counties in Northwest Oklahoma, including Garfield, saw no change.

Texas County in the Panhandle picked up four new cases, a slowdown for an area that has seen a surge of hundreds of new cases in the past month, according to OSDH.

OSDH highlighted efforts in Texas County in its weekly report Friday evening, including increased testing and contact tracing efforts in the county seat of Guymon and surrounding towns and Seaboard Foods, a food processing plant and major employer. There also have been efforts to overcome language barriers in the community and through religious leaders, and an outbreak support team was formed, according to OSDH.

A large number of new COVID-19 cases in the Comanche County Detention Center also was pointed out on the OSDH report, as officials from the county, city of Lawton and the state Health and Corrections departments have worked to prevent transmission in that facility, where overcrowding has been targeted as a risk factor that is common in other county jails.

State numbers

OSDH also reported four additional deaths on Saturday, May 23, 2020, bringing the total number of Oklahomans testing positive for COVID-19 who have died to 311.

The most recently reported deaths occurred May 13 through Thursday, May 23, 2020. Three were older than 65 — two men from Oklahoma and Tulsa counties and a woman from Tulsa County — and a Tulsa County man was in the 50-64 age group, according to OSDH data. Overall, 248, or 79.74%, have been 65 and older; 53, or 17.04%, have been in the 50-64 age group; 6, or 1.93%, have been in the 36-49 age group; and 4, or 1.29%, have been in the 18-35 age group. More men, 162 or 52.09%, than women, 149 or 47.91%, have succumbed to the virus, according to OSDH.

Of those testing positive who have died, 73.4 percent had at least one pre-existing condition such as diabetes, heart or circulatory disease, chronic lung disease, liver disease or renal failure. The average age of those who have tested positive for COVID-19 who have died is 75, according to OSDH.

Data shows deaths per county are 56 in Oklahoma County; 44 in Tulsa County; 37 in Cleveland County; 33 in Washington County; 17 in Wagoner County; 16 in Delaware County; 10 in Caddo County; 8 in Osage County; 7 each in Creek, Greer and Kay counties; 6 in Muskogee County; 5 each in Rogers and Texas counties; 4 each in Mayes and Pottawatomie counties; 3 each in Adair, Canadian, Comanche, Pittsburg and Sequoyah counties; 2 each in Cotton, Grady, Lincoln, McClain, Ottawa, Pawnee, Pontotoc, and Seminole counties; and 1 each in Bryan, Carter, Cherokee, Garfield, Garvin, Jackson, Latimer, Leflore, Logan, Major, McIntosh, Payne, Stephens and Tillman counties.

The number of active COVID-19 cases in the state is 1,004, according to OSDH data. There have been 4,645 Oklahomans, 77.9%, who have recovered from the virus, with 112 of those on Friday. There have been more than 160,000 specimens tested for COVID-19, with 153,804 of those negative, according to OSDH.

Cumulative totals of those testing positive in the State as of Saturday are 77 in the 0-4 age range, 203 in the 5-17 age range, 1,535 in the 18-35 age range, 1,331 in the 36-49 age range, 1,320 in the 50-64 age range and 1,494 in the 65 and older age range. The average age of those with COVID-19 is 49.2, according to OSDH data. Of those testing positive, 3,147, or 52.80%, have been female, and 2,812, or 47.18%, have been male. One is listed as “unknown” gender, according to OSDH data. 

There were 174 individuals with or suspected of having COVID-19 in Oklahoma hospitals as of Friday evening. Seventy-eight of those patients were in intensive care, according to OSDH.

Oklahomans in 73 of Oklahoma’s 77 counties have reported cases of COVID-19. Positive tests recorded per county in the state are 1,189 in Oklahoma County; 903 in Tulsa County; 855 in Texas County; 487 in Cleveland County; 310 in Washington County; 270 in Comanche County; 145 in Wagoner County; 136 in Caddo County; 124 in Canadian County; 99 in Delaware County; 97 in McClain County; 94 in Osage County; 89 in Creek County; 82 in Adair County; 78 in Rogers County; 73 in Grady County; 66 in Greer County; 56 in Pottawatomie County; 52 in Kay County; 45 in Payne County; 40 in Pittsburg County; 37 in Stephens County; 35 each in Muskogee and Ottawa counties; 29 each in Mayes Pawnee counties; 28 in Cherokee County; 25 in Garfield County; 24 in Beaver County; 23 each in McCurtain and Nowata counties; 22 each in Carter, Okmulgee and Tillman counties; 21 each in Bryan, Jackson, Lincoln, and Seminole counties; 18 in Logan County; 15 each in Craig and Garvin counties; 14 each in Choctaw, Love and Sequoyah counties; 13 each in Kingfisher and LeFlore counties; 12 in Custer County; 11 each in McIntosh and Pontotoc counties; 7 each in Marshall and Noble counties; 6 each in Beckham, Haskell, Kiowa and Major counties; 5 each in Cotton and Latimer counties; 4 in Blaine County; 3 each in Dewey, Jefferson, Johnston, Okfuskee Woods and Woodward counties; 2 each in Grant, Murray and Pushmataha counties; and one each in Alfalfa, Atoka, Cimarron, Coal, Harper and Washita counties, according to OSDH data released Saturday.

Northwest Oklahoma

In Northwest Oklahoma, Garfield County has 25 cases, with 22 recovered and one death, an 86-year-old Garfield County woman; Kingfisher County has 13 cases, with 10 recovered; Major County has 6 cases, with 5 recovered and one death, a woman in the 18-35 age group; Blaine County has 4 cases, with 1 recovered; Woods County with 3 cases, with all recovered; Woodward County has 3 cases, with 1 recovered; Grant County with 2 cases, with both recovered; and Alfalfa County has 1 recovered case. 

Cumulative COVID-19 cases by city or town in Oklahoma include 22 in Enid (3 active), 5 each in Kingfisher (1 active) and Okarche (3 active); 3 each in Alva, Fairview, Hennessey and Woodward (2 active); 2 each in Lahoma, Seiling and Watonga (2 active); and 1 each in Dover, Garber, Geary (1 active), Jet, Lamont, Laverne, Medford, Okeene and Ringwood, according to data released by OSDH on Friday. Residents living in areas with under 100 in population or those with unknown addresses may be recorded as “other.”

Free testing for COVID-19 is ongoing at the Garfield County and other state Health Departments. Testing is by appointment only for Blaine County, 521 W. 4th, Watonga, (580) 623-7977; Garfield County, 2501 S. Mercer, Enid, (580) 233-0650; Grant County, 115 N. Main, Medford, (580) 395-2906; Kingfisher County, 124 E. Sheridan, courthouse annex room #101, Kingfisher, (405) 375-3008; Major County, 501 E. Broadway, Fairview, (580) 227-3362; Noble County, 300 Fir St., Perry, (580) 336-2257; Woods County, 511 Barnes St., Alva, (580) 327-3192; and Woodward County, 1631 Texas Ave., Woodward, (580) 256-6416. For a full list of county drive-through testing, go to https://coronavirus.health.ok.gov/drive-thru-testing. Some health department also advise the public to check their Facebook pages for more information regarding testing.

 

Long-term care facilities 

 

The virus has impacted Oklahoma’s long-term care and nursing home facilities particularly hard, with 905, or 15.5%, of the state’s positive COVID-19 cases involving a resident or staff member, according to the OSDH executive report Friday evening, which also states there have been 155 deaths involving long-term care centers and nursing homes, including one staff member in Northwest Oklahoma in April.

 

The virus has impacted Oklahoma’s long-term care and nursing home facilities particularly hard, with 905, or 15.5%, of the state’s positive COVID-19 cases involving a resident or staff member, according to the OSDH executive report Friday evening, which also states there have been 155 deaths involving long-term care centers and nursing homes, including one staff member in Northwest Oklahoma in April.

 

Results for all COVID-19 testing undertaken by the Health Department at Enid long-term care and nursing home facilities between April 29 and May 7 have returned, with no more negative results, said Maggie Jackson, OSDH regional director of community engagement and health planning for District 2, which includes Garfield County. Final results on the last of the pending tests were returned from the lab week.

 

There are three confirmed positive results associated with long-term care facilities in Enid and one that is being disputed after the Oklahoma State Department of Health reported it on Thursday. Officials with Garland Road Nursing & Rehabilitation said the person at their facility has since tested negative for the virus.

 

“On April 26, 2020, Garland Road was notified of a positive COVID-19 test for a hospitalized Garland resident,” said Kate Pentz, administrator for the facility, said Friday. “At that time, all proper agencies, residents and families were notified of the positive result. In the following days, Garland Road was notified that the result was a false positive and resident had yielded two negative results to confirm. Since then, COVID-19 testing has been conducted for all residents and employees at Garland Road Nursing & Rehabilitation and all results have been negative to this date. Garland Road Nursing & Rehabilitation will continue to follow state and federal guidelines to protect our seniors the best we can. We thank the residents and their families for being patient during this trying time.

 

Jackson said since the testing was undertaken by the hospital, OSDH cannot confirm or deny the final prognosis. Officials with the hospital had not responded as of 7 p.m. Friday. OSDH still had the facility listed on its executive report Friday evening.

 

The Commons was one of the first testing sites in the statewide initiative after an employee and another resident of the retirement and assisted living facility in Enid were confirmed positive for the virus April 30 while undergoing health care for unrelated issues, according to the facility. One other resident of the Commons tested positive for COVID-19, according to an OSDH report on Friday May 15, 2020, and one other test was inconclusive, according to Garfield County Health Department.

 

In addition to Garfield County facilities, OSDH reported a long-term care facility case involving a Blaine County individual on Tuesday, May 19, 2020.

 

In April, a resident and two staff members, including a caregiver from Major County who died, tested positive for COVID-19 at Seiling Nursing Center, and a resident at First Shamrock Care Center in Kingfisher contracted the virus, according to OSDH.

 

OSDH also reported a long-term care facility case involving a Blaine County individual on May 19, one at Center of Family Love in Okarche on May 14 and Hennessey Nursing & Rehab, a senior living facility in Kingfisher County on May 12. 

CDC information

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has added six new COVID-19 symptoms to its list that people should be aware: chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat and new loss of taste or smell. These symptoms may appear 2–14 days after exposure to the virus. The main symptoms of COVID-19 remain coughing and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing.

Emergency warning signs for COVID-19 are trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion or inability to arouse, bluish lips or face, according to the CDC. More information can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html.

Those with symptoms of COVID-19 should call ahead to local emergency rooms. Those with minor symptoms should contact their regular physicians.

Resources and information on COVID-19 can be obtained by calling 211 or going to https://covidresources.ok.gov/. 

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