Cases and hospitalizations have gone down in recent weeks, but the pandemic is still at a higher level in Hamilton County than what was seen in recent years.
The county is averaging 680 cases per day, nearly half of last week's average. Health Commissioner Greg Kesterman says active cases have also decreased. This week, the county has 27,000 active cases compared to 36,000 last week.
"So there's still a need for folks to be careful when they're out and about, continue wearing those masks and keeping sick at home," Kesterman said. "That 27,000 though does compare to just one week ago when we were at 36,000, so we are definitely seeing a sharp decline in cases."
Within the region, 775 people are hospitalized due to the virus, a decrease from 950 the previous week. However, deaths per day in Hamilton County are not decreasing.
"We are seeing anywhere from four to five deaths per day on average and each one of those is truly a resident of Hamilton County so there is without a doubt impact in our community," Kesterman said.
Looking back at hospitalizations, data reveals that Black residents have more than double the hospitalization rate compared to white residents. However, death rates were similar for both races.
"And so we continue to work to make sure that we are able to get vaccine out into the communities where minority populations live and we are working to make sure that everyone has equal access to vaccine in Hamilton County," Kesterman said.
The county's Asian residents have the lowest death and hospitalization rates, but also have the highest vaccine rates.
You can see the county's vaccination rates by age group below:
Greater Cincinnati's positivity rate slightly more than 22%. Hamilton County's is at 19.72%.
