“We are in a decline and we hope it continues for people hospitalized because of Covid,” the governor said.
“This is more people getting vaccinated. This is more people wearing their masks. Keep it up,” Beshear added, warning Covid-19 hospitalization and ICU numbers in the state are still very high and could tick back up.
Also Thursday, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced the state’s Covid-19 positivity rate has dropped 20% in the past month and hospitalizations are down 60% from their peak. On the same day, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said that while the state has seen a “significant decline in cases, hospitalizations and percent positive tests” in the past weeks, there could be another surge soon.
“Today, I want to emphasize the importance of not waiting until the next wave of Covid cases to get vaccinated,” Kemp said. “Given that our increase in cases and hospitalizations in 2021 were similar in timing to surges seen in 2020, we can only assume that a winter increase is also possible.”
But currently, an average of nearly 2,000 people die and about 114,000 people are infected with Covid-19 every day, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
“We’re going to lose a bunch more people,” West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said at a news briefing Wednesday. “All I can possibly do, with a good conscience, is continue to urge you, in every way, to get vaccinated.”
Officials and experts are employing multiple strategies to try to increase vaccination protection.
Schools, businesses and employers have implemented mandates for students and employees to be vaccinated against the virus. And the FDA has authorized booster doses to increase vaccine protection for vulnerable populations.
About a third of parents say they’d vaccinate kids ages 5-11 right away, poll finds
Meanwhile, a slightly increasing proportion of parents may be open to children ages 5-11 getting a Covid-19 vaccine as soon as one is available to them, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation poll.
That’s up from 26% who said the same thing in a July poll, the foundation said. About 32% of September’s respondents said they would wait to see how the vaccine was working, against 40% who said the same thing in July.
The percentage of parents saying they definitely wouldn’t seek the vaccine for their child this age group, however, has barely moved. About 24% of respondents said this in September, versus 25% in July, Kaiser said.
About 7% in September said they’d allow their child to get the vaccine only if required, against 9% who said the same in July.
The latest Kaiser poll was conducted September 13-22.
Thursday is vaccine deadline for California health care workers
On the local and federal level, officials are implementing vaccination mandates to increase protection.
Under an order issued August 5, the state health department said these workers must have a second dose of a two-dose mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, or a single shot of the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, by Thursday.
He directed the Labor Department to require all businesses with 100 or more employees ensure their workers are either vaccinated or tested once a week. Companies could face thousands of dollars in fines per employee if they don’t comply.
Those requirements are still weeks away from being implemented, but employers should expect them to come this year, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday.
The St. Barnabas Hospital Health System had 58 employees who failed to show proof of vaccination as of Wednesday, spokesman Steve Clark said. The employees were suspended and have until Monday morning to show proof of vaccination. If they don’t, they’ll be terminated, Clark said.
“Patient care has not been compromised at all,” Clark said. “Schedules have been created accordingly. People will work overtime, or part-timers or agency personnel will be brought in when necessary.”
No health care facility in the state has closed as a result of any staffing shortages resulting from people not complying with the vaccine requirements, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday.
As of Monday evening, 92% of nursing home staff, 89% of adult care facilities staff, and 92% of hospital staff had received at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose, the governor’s office said.
New York officials are looking into expanding the vaccine requirement to health care workers at facilities that are not regulated state health department, such as prisons, Hochul said.
CNN’s Jason Hanna, Naomi Thomas, Lauren Mascarenhas, Deidre McPhillips, Holly Yan, Melissa Alonso, Kiely Westhoff, Andy Rose, Nikki Carvajal and Mirna Alsharif contributed to this report.