Officials continue to push for vaccinations

COVID cases and hospitalizations may be trending down, but Gov. John Carney urged more young people to get vaccinated, while requiring educators to get vaccinated or undergo weekly testing.

“This is one way to keep everyone safe while the children and educators are in school,” he said during a Sept. 28 press conference.

The August spike in COVID cases led by the Delta variant appears to be leveling off, with less than a 1 percent increase in the case rate from the previous week, said Division of Public Health Director Karyl Rattay. The percent of positive cases and death rates are also down, she said.

“We do expect the trend to continue,” she said.

Rates among the 5-17 age group, however, are trending up, she said, although not as high as the positive cases per 10,000 for the 18-64 age group.

“We’re seeing the most spread where we have the lowest vaccination rate,” Carney said.

In September, Rattay said, there were 42 children hospitalized, but she gave no further information on whether those children had underlying health conditions.

Carney said the virus continues to predominantly affect the elderly.

“Overwhelmingly those who are killed by the virus are people who are older Delawareans,” he said.

As of Sept. 27, 39 people had died from COVID for the month of September.

Even as the number of vaccinated in the 18-and-older population is pushing 80 percent, Carney said getting more people vaccinated is a priority.

“Those who aren’t vaccinated, let’s address the hesitancy you have,” Carney said.

One concern among women in the 20-30-year-old range is fertility. Rattay said the Centers for Disease Control and the Food and Drug Administration are conducting pregnancy studies on a national level. She said there is no evidence that fertility is affected by the vaccine, and there is strong evidence that pregnant women who get the shot can pass antibodies to their unborn children.

“The studies are good,” she said.