BY MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
The State of Missouri has seen a surge of COVID-19 cases recently. Since Thursday, Buchanan County has seen 46 new cases.
Testing has been done by the state on the new Delta Variant. Connie Werner, Clinic Supervisor for the St. Joseph Health Department, says the spread of the variant should be treated with the same level of caution.
"For us from a health department standpoint, we just know that it can cause increased cases, and we're seeing increased cases," Werner says. "So ultimately the variant doesn't change actions, so it's to be aware that it can be more contagious, but what you do for it is no different."
Werner adds the variant is still fairly new, but it should be treated with the same level of caution.
"I think that we hear a lot of words that can be new, like Delta or whatever the new variation is," Werner says "I think the main thing to know is that what you need to look at is in your area are you seeing an increase in cases, and if so does it matter what the variant is?"
With the Fourth of July holiday coming up, and students preparing to go back to school in a couple of months, the St. Joseph Health Department is asking Buchanan County to keep COVID-19 precautions in mind.
Werner says while the CDC has granted more freedoms as COVID cases decrease nationwide, that shouldn't necessarily change the actions of the community, especially with cases going up.
"So if you know that your community has 20 percent vaccinated which is one in five people, and you know that cases are increasing, it really doesn't change what we've been stating from the beginning," she said.
Werner says those who are unvaccinated should avoid large gatherings, wear a mask indoors and stay six feet apart.
Since last Monday, there have been 166 new cases of COVID-19 in Buchanan County, including 44 on Tuesday alone. Mosaic Life Care is also treating 16 COVID patients - 15 in St. Joseph and one in Albany.
St. Joseph health officials advise residents to work with medical facilities to prevent the spread of the virus - whether that's getting the vaccine, getting tested or staying home when you're sick.
While 53.3 percent of Americans have started vaccination, many Missouri counties are well short of 40 percent. In Buchanan County, just 18.8 percent of residents have completed vaccination.