Monroe County appears to be seeing better days as coronavirus infection rates reach their lowest number in two months.
The county’s seven-day average for new positive cases hit just below 409 on Thursday. Monroe County Executive Adam Bello said it’s a moment for cautious optimism, especially given how much the infection rate has changed since autumn. The current positivity rate is 6.1%.
“If we had the numbers that we have today back then, we would have been very concerned,” said Bello. “The reason why our numbers look good and we’re optimistic is because in context of what we’ve gone through and the peak that we went through, things look very good.”
However, hospitalization rates are still too high, Bello said. There are 727 hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the region, and 168 in intensive care units as of Thursday. He says that hospitalizations are a lagging indicator, and hopes that in the coming days those numbers will decline as well.
County Public Health Commissioner Dr. Michael Mendoza said there are still ongoing unintended consequences of the pandemic, including prolonged isolation.
“This pandemic has impacted our community in ways that nobody could have anticipated. So to those who are potentially at home struggling trying to figure out how to find light in this darkness, reach out,” Mendoza said. “If you need help, please know that the community is here and we have your back.”
