In what could be the final COVID-19 update from his office for the foreseeable future, Governor Andy Beshear noted everything is — for the most part — moving in a good and positive direction.
Officials reported less than 10,000 new cases for the entirety of last week, with testing positivity down to 4.17% across the Commonwealth, in what are measurable lows during the breadth of this pandemic.
Less than 500 people remain hospitalized with COVID-19 complications, with less than 100 in ICUs and less than 60 on ventilators.
The biggest concern in the pandemic now, Beshear said, is the remaining high rate of death. More than 280 Kentuckians died of COVID-19 last week, including a 25-year-old, two 32-year-olds, a 37-year-old, a 42-year-old and a 49-year-old in Louisville.
Beshear added that the age of deaths remains alarming.
Last week, more than 12,000 new cases were reported with a testing positivity of 6.04%, further showing that the state is experiencing a rapid pace of pandemic decline.
As of this weekend, more than 2.8 million Kentuckians have received at least one dose of the vaccine; more than 1 million have received a booster shot.
Beshear also noted that in the absence of new ARPA funding or other legislative appropriations, several COVID-19 programs that helped Kentuckians during the pandemic are anticipated to end in the coming weeks.
This includes the COVID-19 test-to-stay program for kindergarten through 12th grade, and no program will be available for the 2022-23 academic year. It also means that state-supported community-based COVID-19 testing provided throughout the commonwealth by Gravity Diagnostics and the University of Kentucky will cease.
Filing dates for assistance will taper and fade in the coming weeks.
