Most recent COVID deaths in Springfield area weren’t vaccinated. Is it a warning sign?
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Springfield-area health officials said at least 15 of the 17 Greene County residents who recently died of COVID-19 were not vaccinated.
On Tuesday, the Springfield-Greene County Health Department reported the death toll reached the highest it had been in a single reporting period since late January.
All 17 deaths happened between June 21 and July 4. Those dead range in age from their 40s to 90s. It’s not currently known what strain they were each infected with.
One of the people had received the first dose of the vaccine months ago, but never received the second dose, said Aaron Schekorra, the public health information administrator for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department.
One person’s vaccination history could not be confirmed, since they weren’t listed in the state database. The other 15 had not received the vaccine at all.
Schekorra said two of the 17 victims in the southwest Missouri county did not seek medical attention and died at home.
“Obviously they had a severe illness and would have had symptoms that the CDC indicates being signs that you should seek emergency medical attention, and for one reason or another that didn’t happen,” he said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, anyone with symptoms — including trouble breathing, frequent pain or pressure in the chest, confusion, trouble waking up or staying awake and pale, gray or blue-colored skin, lips or nail beds — should seek emergency care immediately.
The health department started to see the spike around graduation time and Memorial Day weekend, Schekorra said. Cases and hospitalization in Greene County have steadily increased since then as people continue to gather more, and the delta variant continues to be the dominant strain in Greene County.
“That increase in cases is beginning to translate into deaths, unfortunately,” he said. “We are sort of an early indicator of what’s going to happen in parts of the country that have low vaccination rates.”
Greene County’s vaccination rate is just over 39%. Across Missouri, 39.4% of the population has been fully vaccinated, according to the state health officials. Across the country, 47.5% of the nation is fully vaccinated.
As of Monday, Greene County’s seven-day case average landed at 139 cases per day, a 20% increase in cases from a week ago. Those between the ages of 0 and 4 and 31 and 40 saw the largest increases in new infections
On Tuesday morning, Springfield hospitals were treating 181 coronavirus patients, according to the health department.
Over the Fourth of July weekend, one hospital in Springfield ran out of ventilators for its patients.
Mercy Springfield hospital officials reported Monday that more ventilators had arrived, a second COVID-19 ICU unit was opened and that more respiratory therapists are needed to help the “tired” ones working now.
Missouri remains in the bottom half of all states in vaccinating residents, according to data compiled by The New York Times.
State officials have requested help from federal “surge response teams” to help communities struggling with low vaccination rates as the delta variant takes off. Vaccination campaigns have been particularly tough in rural parts of the state.
Schekorra said unvaccinated people, including those on the fence, need to inform themselves so they can prioritize getting the vaccine.
“Many people talk about this as if it’s a personal decision, but it’s a decision that absolutely affects the entire community, so we need more people to get vaccinated,” he said. “The pandemic’s not over. COVID-19 is still here.”
He urged people to continue taking precautions to stop the spread, including wearing masks, keeping social distance and avoiding large crowds if unvaccinated.
Those who have yet to receive the vaccine in Greene County can make an appointment through vaccine417.com or by calling the Health Department’s COVID-19 Call Center at (417) 874-1211.
The Star’s Lisa Gutierrez and Bill Lukitsch contributed.
This story was originally published July 7, 2021 at 12:48 PM with the headline "Most recent COVID deaths in Springfield area weren’t vaccinated. Is it a warning sign?."
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