Another death, 309 new cases

Wise County reported 259 new COVID-19 cases between Monday and yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

As of Thursday, the county had reported a total of 7,633 cases since spring 2020, compared to 7,374 cases three days earlier.
There were 274 county residents hospitalized with COVID as of yesterday.

The county’s total number of deaths associated with COVID-19 increased by one, from 153 to 154.

The health department’s cumulative positive case count for Norton increased by 50, from 906 Monday to 956 yesterday.
There were 37 city residents hospitalized with COVID as of yesterday.
The number of total deaths in the city remained at 20.

In Virginia, new case rates are exploding as the highly contagious omicron variant spreads.

Statewide, the total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began rose from 1,000,259 Monday to 1,025,033 yesterday, an increase of 24,774. The number of “probable” cases rose from 396,896 Monday to 409,653 yesterday, an increase of 12,757.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Virginia increased by 29 to 13,233. The number of probable COVID-19 deaths increased by 10 to 2,620.
To look at the health department’s data, visit www.vdh.virginia.gov and go to the COVID-19 Data and Resources section.

VACCINATION RATES

As of yesterday, 54 percent of Wise County residents and nearly 64 percent of Norton residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, according to health department statistics.

Forty-six percent of county residents and 53 percent of Norton residents have received a second dose.

Seventeen percent of county residents and 20 percent of Norton residents have received a booster or third dose.

Former Gov. Ralph Northam announced Nov. 12 that more than 83 percent of Virginia adults had received at least one dose, while 75 percent of adults had received a second dose.

Guidance from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention specifies that those who are unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated should continue to wear masks, practice physical distancing and avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces.