Monroe County is now seeing approximately 10-15 new coronavirus cases per day, which is substantially higher than the low figures it was compiling before the Delta variant caused concern across the nation, Monroe County Health Department Administrator John Wagner said. 

At its lowest points, Monroe County was seeing just a couple new cases per day in May/June, Wagner said. 

Within the past week, Wagner estimated he was informed of 10-15 new cases per day. For the period of July 25-31, the county saw a seven-day rolling average positivity rate of 9.4 percent, according to Illinois Department of Public Health. This is higher than the target of 8 percent. 

Wagner said this positivity rate is on par with the rest of Region 4, and while not all these cases may be from the Delta variant, it is playing a significant role in numbers being larger in the past couple of weeks. 

He is hoping Delta is now seeing its peak, as the variant has previously shown it gets worse before it gets better. 

“We are definitely in a large increase, now hopefully it stabilizes. Judging from some of the other countries that have had Delta and stuff, it lasts for about 2-3 weeks at the peak and then it starts to decline,” Wagner said. “So, we’re hoping that this is the peak … and then we’ll start to decline, but with school starting and everything else, we may not be at the peak.” 

The most recent seven-day rolling average positivity rate is an improvement from the July 18-24 rate of 13.5 percent. However, Wagner is leery about stating this means Monroe County’s COVID numbers are improving. 

“It did go down, and I like to think it’s going down, but I’m not too sure that it’s actually even going down or if people just aren’t getting tested,” Wagner said. 

Monroe County also recently saw its first COVID death in months. Last week, a man in his 70s died. He was hospitalized for an extended period of time. 

As of mid-day Tuesday, Wagner said Monroe County has seen a total of 4,669 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began, with 79 of those being considered active. For a case to be considered active, the infected individual must still be under quarantine. 

On Tuesday, Wagner reported a total of three Monroe Countians were hospitalized, with one being discharged later in the day. The patient who was discharged was a 2-year-old. Wagner said if very young children are hospitalized, they most often are released quickly.  

Monroe County is still within the “high transmission” category of the CDC’s COVID Data Tracker. Wagner said 72 percent of the country is within a “substantial” or “high” transmission area. 

Both Monroe County’s test positivity and community data are on par with the rest of Region 4, Wagner said. 

Given Monroe County’s COVID data, Wagner said residents should continue to make decisions wisely. 

“People have to weigh the risk and we do it every day with driving a car and everything else,” Wagner said. “If you go into a crowded building with 300 people with very little airflow, even though you’re vaccinated you are increasing your chance of getting it. Now, you’re not increasing it as much as somebody who is standing right next to you who is not vaccinated, but you’re still increasing your chance of getting it.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, IDPH reported 48.66 percent of eligible persons in Monroe County are fully vaccinated. Wagner said the health department has been seeing an uptick in the number of people getting vaccinated,and he assumes these people are influenced by the pervasiveness of the Delta variant along with the vaccine having been available for months now. 

At the department’s most recent clinic on Thursday, Wagner said they had vaccinated approximately 71 individuals by the end of the day. He estimated about 70 percent of those in attendance were receiving first-time doses. 

Wagner said Monroe County has seen some “breakthrough cases,” which refers to people who have been vaccinated but still test positive for COVID. However, he said this is not enough to outweigh the costs of not being vaccinated and catching COVID. 

“Last week … it looked like between 15 and 20 percent of our cases were considered fully vaccinated,” Wagner said. 

The next COVID vaccine clinic at the Monroe County Health Department office takes place Thursday, Aug. 19, from 4-6:30 p.m. at 1315 Jamie Lane, Waterloo. Call or text 618-612-6404 or 618-340-4819 for an appointment.

Other places to get vaccinated locally include Waterloo Walmart, CVS Pharmacy in Columbia and inside Waterloo Schnucks, and the Columbia and Waterloo Walgreens.