UTICA, N.Y. — The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Oneida County has declined more than 80 percent in the last eight weeks.
In its Tuesday update, the county reported that 33 people were currently hospitalized in the county, with 29 patients at MVHS and four at Rome Health. The total is down from 42 hospitalized the prior Tuesday and 57 hospitalized two weeks ago. The current number in the hospital is 81 percent below the high-water mark of 177 on Jan. 6.
The sharp decline in the number of present COVID hospital patients comes amid large drops in virus cases in Oneida County.
The county reported just 24 new coronavirus cases in its Tuesday update and 22 in its Monday update. Oneida County regularly posted at least 100 infections a day in the period from late November to late January, peaking at 364 cases on Jan. 1.
The county’s active infections have plummeted to 603 as of Tuesday, down from a peak of about 7,300 less than six weeks ago.
Vaccines
Oneida County-operated PODs have administered more than 14,000 total vaccine doses as of the end of last week, the county reported Monday. In addition, MVHS has put nearly 16,700 doses in arms while Rome Health has administered more than 5,800 doses. Thousands of other doses have also gone into arms at the state-operated vaccine site at SUNY Polytechnic Institute and at pharmacies and clinics, but the county does not have data on those venues.
Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, Jr. will provide a COVID briefing Wednesday at 3 p.m. to discuss plans to administer newly secured vaccine doses at additional sites around the county.