County, Norton report 80 new COVID cases

Wise County reported 70 new COVID-19 cases between Monday and yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

As of yesterday, the county had reported a total of 5,460 cases since spring 2020, compared to 5,390 cases as of Monday.
There were 229 county residents hospitalized with COVID as of yesterday.
The county’s total number of deaths associated with COVID-19 was revised down by one, from 129 to 128. The reason was not immediately clear.

The health department’s cumulative positive case count for Norton increased by 10 between Monday and yesterday, from 577 to 587.

There were 30 city residents hospitalized with COVID as of yesterday.
The number of total deaths in the city increased by one, from 13 to 14.

In Virginia, the total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began rose from 689,224 Monday to 691,953 yesterday, an increase of 2,729. The number of “probable” cases rose from 238,775 Monday to 240,220 yesterday, an increase of 1,445.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Virginia increased by 94 to 11,831. The number of probable COVID-19 deaths increased by 11 to 2,258.

To look at the health department’s data, visit www.vdh.virginia.gov and go to the COVID-19 Data and Resources section.

VACCINATION RATES

As of yesterday, 50 percent of Wise County residents and about 58 percent of Norton residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, according to health department statistics.

Almost 43 percent of county residents and about 48 percent of Norton residents are fully vaccinated.

Gov. Ralph Northam announced in mid-August that 73 percent of Virginians 18 and older had received at least one dose.

Guidance from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention specifies that those who are unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated should continue to wear masks, practice physical distancing and avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces.