Laurel, Knox, Whitley and Bell counties report additional COVID-19 cases Wednesday

COVID-19 cases continued to increase in Laurel, Knox, Whitley and Bell counties Wednesday afternoon as all four counties reported at least one additional COVID-19 case.

The Laurel County Health Department reported Wednesday that eight new cases of COVID-19 had been diagnosed in Laurel County, and that seven of those cases were recovering at home, and one case was hospitalized. Wednesday’s cases include: a 59-year-old female, a 32-year-old female, a 22-year-old male, a 48-year-old male, a 50-year-old male, a 25-year-old male, a 28-year-old female, and a 69-year-old female.

The Laurel County Health Department reported late Tuesday afternoon that five additional cases had been reported. On Monday, the Laurel County Health Department reported that 15 additional cases had occurred between Saturday and Monday, including the death of an 88-year-old man on Monday.

Laurel County now has a total of 230 COVID-19 cases out of which four people have died.

Currently, there are a total of 118 active cases, out of which 12 are hospitalized, and 106 are isolating at home.

Between March 24 and June 4, there were 22 COVID-19 cases diagnosed in Laurel County out of which 20 people recovered and two died. Since June 9, there have been an additional 208 cases reported there, according to the Laurel County Health Department.

Out of the 230 Laurel County cases, 22 patients were under the age of 18, 57 patients were ages 18-30, 38 patients were ages 31-40, 30 patients were ages 41-50, 30 patients were ages 51-60, 34 patients were ages 61-70, 12 patients were ages 71-80, and seven patients were over age 80.

A total of 5,956 COVID-19 tests have been performed in Laurel County as of July 13.

Knox County

The Knox County Health Department reported three new COVID-19 cases Wednesday afternoon.

“We have been notified of three residents testing positive for COVID-19. Two of these positives are children. This brings the total number of positives for Knox County to be 120. While the threat to the community still remains low, we are seeing an increase in the amount of community spread of COVID-19. We cannot encourage enough for community members to use proper preventative measures. This is the only way to stop the spread of COVID-19,” said Knox County Health Department Director Rebecca Rains.

The Knox County Health Department reported two new cases Tuesday evening, and a total of 13 new cases Monday, including the two Christian Health Center patients and one employee. One of Monday’s positive cases involved a child, but officials didn’t disclose the age or gender of the child.

Previously, 46 patients and eight staff at Christian Health Center in Corbin tested positive for COVID-19, and five of those patients with COVID-19 later died. All had pre-existing health conditions. Two of the eight staff members, who initially tested positive, resided in Knox County.

Between April 6 and May 30, Knox County reported 10 COVID-19 cases with all 10 patients having fully recovered by June 15. Since June 11, there have been 110 new COVID-19 cases diagnosed in Knox County.

Out of the first 75 Knox County cases, one patient was under the age of 18, seven patients were ages 18-30, eight patients were ages 31-40, eight patients were ages 41-50, five patients were ages 51-60, five patients were ages 61-70, 12 patients were age 71-80, and 29 patients were over age 80.

Whitley County

The Whitley County Health Department reported Wednesday that one new COVID-19 case had been confirmed in a Whitley County resident, which raises the total number of cases in Whitley County to 53.

The Whitley County Health Department announced Tuesday that seven additional cases of COVID-19 had been reported, including four confirmed cases and three probable cases. On Monday the health department reported three new COVID-19 cases, including two confirmed cases and one probable. The Whitley County Health Department reported two additional probable cases of COVID-19 in Whitley County residents Friday afternoon.

A confirmed case means that a PCR test has identified virus genetic material, which usually comes from nose or mouth swabs, according to a graphic from the Whitley County Health Department.

A probable case is defined as a person meeting clinical criteria and epidemiologic evidence with no confirmatory laboratory testing performed for COVID-19; or a person meeting presumptive laboratory evidence and either clinical criteria or epidemiologic evidence; or a person meeting vital records criteria with no confirmatory laboratory testing performed for COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Whitley County has 19 active COVID-19 cases out of which two are isolating in the hospital, and 17 are isolating at home.

Between April 6 and May 17, Whitley County had 11 COVID-19 cases diagnosed, all of whom have been released from isolation.

Since June 8, Whitley County has had 42 additional cases diagnosed, including 33 cases diagnosed since June 29.

So far, the majority of Whitley County cases have involved people ages 50 and under.

Out of the 52 Whitley County cases, three patients were under the age of 18, six patients were ages 18-20, 13 patients were ages 21-30, 11 patients were ages 31-40, six patients were ages 41-50, three patients were ages 51-60, six patients were ages 61-70, and five patients were age 71-80.

Bell County

For the second day in a row Wednesday, the Bell County Health Department confirmed eight new positive COVID-19 cases, which raises the total number of cases in Bell County to 130.

The health department also reported six additional cases Monday, four additional cases Sunday, seven additional cases Saturday, 20 additional cases Friday, and four additional cases Thursday.

Currently there are 75 active cases, out of which two people are hospitalized including: a 48-year-old male and a 74-year-old female.

A total of 55 people have recovered from COVID-19 in Bell County.

Bell County was one of the last counties in the state to report a positive COVID-19 case with its first positive case reported on May 16. Prior to June 29, Bell County had only reported eight positive COVID-19 cases, and since that time a total of 122 additional cases have been reported.

Other cases

The Lake Cumberland District Health Department reported McCreary County’s 19th COVID-19 Tuesday evening. The person is an 89-year-old male, who is hospitalized and still symptomatic.

Gov. Andy Beshear reported Wednesday afternoon that 477 newly reported cases of COVID-19 had been confirmed statewide, including 10 new deaths.

Statewide, there have been 20,677 total positive cases of the COVID-19 virus in Kentucky, and 645 total deaths from the virus. At least 498,179 people in Kentucky have been tested for COVID-19, and 5,475 people have reported that they have recovered, according to the latest information on the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s official COVID-19 website.