Daily COVID-19 Updates

Oct 12th

The Allegany County Health Department reports that 17 individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 since Wednesday, bringing the total case count for Allegany County to 521. The latest cases include two females and two males in their teens, two females and a male in their 20s, a female in her 30s, two females in their 40s, two males and a female in their 50s, a male and female in their 60s, a female in her 70s and a female in her 80s. Only one of the latest cases has required hospitalization.

To date, 19,017 Allegany County residents have been tested for COVID-19 and received their results. Of those, 18,496 were negative and 521 were positive. Currently, 39 Allegany County residents are isolating with a COVID-19 diagnosis.

Allegany High School Head Football Coach Bryan Hansel talks about postponing practices after someone associated with the organization tests positive for COVID-19. To hear the interview click here https://soundcloud.com/amanda-mangan/bryan-hansel-for-pht

Allegany County Health Department Health Officer Jenelle Mayer discusses COVID-19 testing for those under 18 in Allegany County, reminders about currently guidelines and how contact tracing works. To hear the interview click here https://soundcloud.com/…/jenelle-mayer-allegany-county…

From GCHD: The Garrett County Health Department received 3 additional positive COVID-19 results, bringing the current county total positives to 79.

The new positive COVID-19 cases are a teenage male a female in her 40s, and a female in her 50s. All have ptoms and are isolating at their homes. Currently there are a total of three residents isolating due to positive COVID-19 test results.

An individual in the Garrett County Public School system has tested positive for COVID-19. The individual is out of the building and will continue to quarantine. Garrett County Public Schools will follow its comprehensive internal plan for a positive case, including consistent sanitizing, informing families whose students were at risk of exposure or in close contact, and supporting the affected family. Through collaboration with the Garrett County Health Department and contact tracing, it has been determined that no close contact of any student or staff member has occurred in this case. The GCPS’ plan for notification is as follows:

The Garrett County Health Department will notify those who have had close contact with the ill person. Close contact means being less than 6 feet for more than 15 minutes, with or without a face covering.

The confidentiality of the COVID-19 positive person will be maintained.

Students and staff members have been closely adhering to all safety protocols in place, including facial coverings, hand washing, and social distancing. Garrett County Public Schools follows all CDC, Maryland Department of Health, and Maryland State Department of Education protocols, including collaborating with the Garrett County Health Department. Additionally, the district requests that if your child is tested for COVID-19, you report your child’s test results to the school nurse at your child’s school.

Garrett County Public Schools will continue to be vigilant in adhering to all of the protocols put in place to continue in-person learning. Students who are required to quarantine at home will continue learning via remote education.

We have been preparing for this scenario in all of the planning for the return to learning. Our primary goal continues to be keeping our students and staff safe. We will continue our efforts to mitigate risk and to maintain a safe environment in our schools. We are grateful to our families for their continued efforts in keeping students home at the first sign of symptoms. These measures along with wearing face-coverings, social distancing, and hand washing will significantly reduce any further transmission risk.

There were two new positive cases from the community today, they are at home self-isolating and are being monitored. Contacts have been notified.

One of these is from South Branch Vocational and Technical Center (SBVTC) that tested positive. Because there are now 4 infected involving two classes and multiple counties, WV School Outbreak mandates school closure for two weeks.

South Branch Career and Technical Education Center will be doing  remote learning until 26th after 4 people in two programs tested positive for COVID-19.

South Branch Vocational and Technical Center will not have in person classes until 10-26-20 due to COVID cases in two classes, involving four positive cases (two from Grant County).

Contacts have been notified and are quarantining at home. COVID testing instructions were provided and recommended due to young people frequently being asymptomatic but infected. The goal of identifying positive persons and tracing contacts to advise on monitoring and self-isolation is to decrease the spread, especially to vulnerable persons.

The DHHR website has numbers updated as providers that test submit results electronically. Recently there have been additional providers testing Grant County residents. Those providers or the people tested notify the Health Department, however the electronic submissions from these providers have a slow turn around at the state reporting center. There are times that those cases are reported on the website days later. Hopefully this explains why the numbers do not match the actual numbers reported here.

173 Total COVID Cases

• 170 confirmed Positive COVID cases

• 3 Probable COVID cases

• 152 Total Recovered

• 10 Active Cases. 1 is hospitalized at this time, all cases will remain active and in quarantine until a minimum of 10 days after diagnosis or symptom onset, AND no symptoms for 24 hours without medication.

• 11 Deaths, of these:

The Hampshire County Health Department has confirmed one new positive COVID-19 case today. Case investigation has been completed and contacts have been notified. The case is not related to the nursing home.

The current case county for Hampshire Co. is 115 confirmed, 2 probable, 6 active, and 1 death. No hospitalizations at this time.

Bedford County

Total Cases: 291
Confirmed: 244 
Probable: 47
Negative: 4,836
Cases per 100,000: 604.0
Deaths: 6 
Deaths per 100,000: 12.5

Somerset County

Total Cases: 273
Confirmed: 232 
Probable: 41
Negative: 11,096
Cases per 100,000: 369.2
Deaths: 3 
Deaths per 100,000: 4.1

Oct 9th

The Allegany County Health Department reports that individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 who were in attendance at large private parties for teenagers held Saturday, October 3 in Allegany County.

People who attended these events are encouraged to watch for symptoms of COVID-19. Symptoms may include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.

If individuals who attended these events begin experiencing symptoms, the health department recommends that they be tested for COVID-19. Free testing is available for Allegany County children ages 18 and under at the Allegany County Fairgrounds Monday through Friday 9 am to 12 noon. Testing is also available at local urgent care clinics and select primary care providers.

There was one new positive COVID-19 case from reported in the Grant County community. This person is at home self-isolating and is being monitored. Contacts have been notified.

There was another person from South Branch Career and Technical Center that tested positive, however that person does not live in Grant County.

170 Total COVID Cases

• 167 confirmed Positive COVID cases

• 3 Probable COVID cases

• 148 Total Recovered

• 11 Active Cases. 3 are hospitalized at this time, all cases will remain active and in quarantine until a minimum of 10 days after diagnosis or symptom onset, AND no symptoms for 24 hours without medication.

• 11 Deaths, of these:

§ 8 Deaths listed as COVID related (6 from GRCC)

§ 3 others tested positive soon before dying from other causes and COVID was not determined to contribute to the death by the physician of record.

All Grant County School and Grant County Health Department Personnel remind parents to please monitor your children for any symptom of COVID every morning BEFORE sending them to school. If there is any question about a symptom, please call the Health Department or your private provider BEFORE sending the student to school.

If you have any symptoms (loss of taste or smell, fever, cough, muscle aches, cough, shortness of breath, headache or diarrhea) or have been told that you are a close contact to a positive case and are tested, please follow the instructions given at that time for self-isolation until test results are returned and you are instructed when to discontinue isolation.

Call Grant Memorial Hospital (304) 257 1026 and press 5 to speak to an ER nurse or Grove Street Health Center at 304-257-2451 to help determine if testing is indicated and instructions how to proceed.

In Mineral County there are 177 total positive cases, 3 are active 170 recovered 4 total deaths

The Hampshire County Health Department has had 4 new positive COVID-19 cases today. All four new cases are contacts of other positives. Case investigation has been completed on all cases and contacts have been notified. None of the new cases are related to the nursing home.

The current case county for Hampshire Co. is 114 confirmed, 2 probable, 6 active, and 1 death. No hospitalizations at this time.

The Hardy County Health Department and Hardy County Office of Emergency Management has one additional confirmed case of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Hardy County, making eight active cases, with a total confirmed case count of 98. We have had one confirmed COVID-19 death. We currently have eight patients in quarantine at home, following proper protocol to protect their neighbors and community. No patients are currently hospitalized due to severe symptoms of COVID-19. Due to privacy, additional information regarding the persons, area of residence, and travel history will not be disclosed. The Hardy County Health Department has completed the necessary contact tracing to ensure the safety of close contacts and to prevent additional transmission. Hardy County now has 89 individuals fully recovered, included in the total confirmed case count of 98.

Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh and Governor Larry Hogan today announced that $11.7 million in general funds will be directed to the Maryland Legal Services Corporation to provide legal services to families facing eviction and other housing security issues.

As many national and local studies establish, counsel in eviction cases often means the difference between families staying in their homes or losing their homes. Maryland Legal Services Corporation (MLSC) makes grants to nonprofit organizations that provide civil legal services for low-income Marylanders. MLSC’s funds have been decimated in the wake of the pandemic, resulting in less legal services for Marylanders at a time when the need is highest.

“Maryland was one of the first states in the nation to implement a moratorium on evictions for tenants affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and we continue to provide targeted relief to help those in need,” said Governor Hogan. “These additional resources are yet another way that we are following through on our commitment to do everything we can to help Marylanders weather this storm, get back on their feet, and recover.”

“One of the most urgent issues facing our state is the wave of evictions that so many residents face as a result of the pandemic,” said Attorney General Frosh. “We need to keep families in their homes and off the streets. I’m pleased we are able to dedicate this money, recovered through the hard work of our lawyers, for this vital purpose. I also want to thank the members of my COVID-19 Access to Justice Task Force for their advocacy for increased legal services funding and their work to help Marylanders facing the loss of their homes.”

Of the funds announced today, $8.7 million was recovered by the Securities Division of the Attorney General for unlawful conduct during the financial crisis and may only be used for housing-related purposes.

“These funds could not have come at a more critical time for the preservation of Maryland’s civil legal aid safety net,” said Susan Erlichman, executive director of the Maryland Legal Services Corporation, the state’s major funder of civil legal aid. “MLSC is experiencing an unprecedented funding shortage due to the impact of COVID on our main revenue sources, and the action taken today translates into literally tens of thousands of Marylanders facing evictions and other matters who otherwise would have had no place to turn, now able to get the legal help they desperately need.”

MLSC makes grants to nonprofit organizations that provide civil legal services for low-income Marylanders. Since 1982, MLSC has made grants totaling over $310 million to help provide services in nearly 3.5 million legal matters.

For more information about the work of the COVID-19 Access to Justice Task Force, visit: https://www.marylandattorneygeneral.gov/…/default.aspx.

Oct 8th

The Allegany County Health Department reports four additional cases of COVID-19 in Allegany County since Monday. The latest cases include a female in her teens, a female in her 20s, a male in his 50s and a male in his 60s. None have required hospitalization. This brings the county’s total positive COVID-19 count up to 504.

From now through the fall, Allegany County kids age 18 and under can get FREE drive-up testing for COVID-19 at the Allegany County Fairgrounds. Testing is offered Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon. No appointment is needed.

In Mineral County there are 176 total cases 2 active 170 recovered 4 total deaths

The Hardy County Health Department and Hardy County Office of Emergency Management has two additional confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Hardy County, making seven active cases, with a total confirmed case count of 97. There has been one confirmed COVID-19 death. There are currently have seven patients in quarantine at home, following proper protocol to protect their neighbors and community. No patients are currently hospitalized due to severe symptoms of COVID-19. Due to privacy, additional information regarding the persons, area of residence, and travel history will not be disclosed. The Hardy County Health Department has completed the necessary contact tracing to ensure the safety of close contacts and to prevent additional transmission. Hardy County now has 89 individuals fully recovered, included in the total confirmed case count of 97.

The  Pennsylvania Health department is seeing significant increases in the number of COVID-19 cases among younger age groups, particularly 19 to 24-year-olds. An alert was sent to healthcare providers about the changing COVID-19 case demographics, as there are more cases in younger age groups than in those 50-64 and 65+. The following regions saw significant increases among 19 to 24-year-olds in each month from April to present in October:

Bedford County Total Cases: 269 Confirmed: 231  Probable: 38
Negative: 4,709 Cases per 100,000: 558.4 Deaths: 6  Deaths per 100,000: 12.5

Somerset County Total Cases: 246 Confirmed: 210  Probable: 36 Negative: 10,815
Cases per 100,000: 332.6 Deaths: 3  Deaths per 100,000: 4.1

On Monday, October 12, 2020, Allegany County Public Schools will begin the implementation of the in-person/hybrid learning model for Grade 1 students. First grade students will report to their bus stop for their normal pick-up time. Schools will be dismissed daily at 1:30 p.m. First grade students will report to school Monday-Thursday, and Friday will be a virtual learning day.

Parents will be provided with their child’s in-person learning schedule for their grade level and will also be provided with a parent letter, a COVID symptom checklist, and mask requirements and guidelines. Parents have also been informed that they have the right to “opt-out “of the in-person/hybrid learning model and have their child remain in a virtual learning environment. The deadline for completing the opt-out form was September 28th.

As the first grade enters school for in-person learning next week, these children will participate in a “Virtual School” facilitated by a certified teacher. A parent who has opted out of in-person/hybrid learning can select to “opt-in” at the end of nine-week marking period, with a start date activation for the next marking period.

Central office staff are currently working on logistical details for phasing in Grade 2 students in the near future. Additional information will be forthcoming once staffing and schedules have been finalized.

Please keep in mind that hybrid learning structures are subject to change based on health metrics and guidance provided by the Allegany County Health Department. Any changes will be communicated to parents on the ACPS website and Blackboard notification system

MD Governor Larry Hogan and Maryland State Police (MSP) Superintendent Colonel Woodrow Jones III today announced that all Maryland State Police Aviation Command (MSPAC) bases will remain open.

In July, due to the anticipated fiscal challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board of Public Works approved budget reductions associated with closing one MSPAC base. Last month, the governor stated that the cuts should not go forward, and has directed MSP to work with state budget officials to ensure the necessary funding is available to ensure all bases are fully operational.

“For more than half a century, the Maryland State Police Aviation Command has been conducting lifesaving medevac flights,” said Governor Hogan. “Our administration is committed to making sure Maryland’s Finest have all the resources they need to continue their excellent service to the state and the region.”

According to an independent study of MSPAC’s basing structure, the strategic locations of the seven bases and the integrated emergency medical system within which the helicopters operate result in an outstanding response rate of at least 95 percent and an ability to be on-scene within 25 minutes. The elimination of one helicopter base would significantly and negatively affect both the response rate and the response time. Analysts estimated that closing one base would decrease the response rate to less than 83 percent and increase response time by eight minutes.

“Based on the governor’s commitment to do all we can to provide the best in public safety services, the Maryland State Police will keep all bases open and all helicopters in the current fleet,” said Colonel Jones. “We look forward to continuing our work in partnership with Maryland’s first responders and hospital providers.”

MSPAC has been conducting medevacs for more than 50 years and has flown more than 150,000 patients to lifesaving trauma care. It is a proud partner in Maryland’s world-renowned integrated emergency medical services system The Maryland State Police are currently looking for a missing runaway juvenile. The missing child is Danelle Ruth Miller, 14 years of age.  She was last seen on Wednesday, 10/7/20, at approximately 1230 hours when she left her residence in the Grantsville area of Garrett County, Maryland. She was wearing a black zip up jacket, blue jeans, green tennis shoes and a blue and gold Northern Huskies backpack.  She is around 5’7″ tall and weighs 135 lbs., has a medium build with brown eyes and black shoulder length hair. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact the Maryland State Police McHenry Barrack at 301-387-1101 or 301-895-1101 .