A year after the COVID-19 pandemic began, cases of the virus are significantly decreasing across the state and the Golden Triangle. Just more than 100 confirmed new cases total have been reported in the four-county area since Feb. 27.
Lowndes County still leads the Golden Triangle in COVID numbers with 6,082 total cases and 141 deaths since the pandemic began in March 2020, according to the most recent data from the Mississippi State Department of Health. There were 61 new cases and four new deaths reported since Feb. 27. Data from MSDH’s website also indicates the test positivity rate has been steadily declining over the last month, from 13.1 percent on Feb. 6 to 7.7 percent on Feb. 27.
There have also been 15,759 doses of COVID-19 vaccine — including both first and second doses — administered to Lowndes County residents as of Thursday at 8 a.m., according to MSDH’s website.
In Oktibbeha County, there have been 39 new cases reported since Feb. 27 for a total of 4,448, according to MSDH. There have been 96 deaths total, only three in the last two weeks. The test positivity rate also dropped from 13 percent on Feb. 6 to 9.2 percent on Feb. 27.
There were 13,801 doses of vaccine administered to Oktibbeha County residents as of Thursday morning.
Clay County saw the lowest number of new cases with only four cases and three deaths reported since Feb. 27, bringing the case total to 1,795 and the death toll to 53 since the pandemic began. The test positivity rate has plummeted from 13.3 percent on Feb. 6 to 1.1 percent on Feb. 27.
Clay County residents have received 4,755 doses of the vaccine.
Noxubee County has a total of 1,237 cases and 31 deaths through the pandemic, with an increase of nine cases and two deaths since Feb. 27. The test positivity rate in the county has dropped from 6.7 percent Feb. 6 to 2 percent on Feb. 27, though it has fluctuated more than the other counties, with the rate increasing to 9.5 percent in mid-February.
There have been 2,586 doses of vaccine administered to Noxubee County residents.
Nearly 680 new cases were reported throughout the state on Wednesday, and Mississippi sits at a total of 299,124 cases and 6,864 deaths. There have been 823,691 doses of one of the COVID-19 vaccines administered, and 302,524 Mississippians fully vaccinated.
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