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Coronavirus

COVID-19 vigil set for Saturday in Warren

A total of 207 county residents have died due to complications of COVID-19. And a time of remembrance not only for those lives lost but those left to grieve the loss is scheduled for this Saturday at Trinity Memorial Episcopal Church. The event is set for 7 p.m. and could move outside to General Joseph Warren Park if the weather permits. As case counts continue to remain low, there are reasons for optimism that we may be on the downside of the pandemic. “That’s exactly a good reason to have some hope,” Missy Green, who is organizing the event, said. “Hopefully this is going ...

Hospital updates visitation policy as COVID cases fall

As Warren County sees a decreasing number of cases of COVID-19, Warren General Hospital is adjusting some policies — including the visitation policy. “We continue to see a decline in COVID -19 inpatients and testing,” CEO Rick Allen said. “On Monday, Feb. 28, we began to allow one ...

COVID cases remain low in county

COVID-19 cases in Warren County continue to be on the decline. Updated methods from the CDC for identifying community transmission levels list the county at medium risk. The 10 cases reported for March 2 by the Department of Health on Thursday mark the highest since Feb. 24 where there were 11. Since then, new case totals have varied from none to six. No COVID-19 deaths have been announced since Feb. 16 and case counts are a far cry from the highest — 95 on Jan. 19 — seen since the start of the pandemic. While cases are down, the data is tougher to track in light of the rising ...

Mask mandate on buses and vans to be lifted

The CDC on Friday dropped a mask requirement “on buses or vans operated by public private school systems.” This week, the Warren County School District is following suit. Jim Grosch, the district’s director of business services, said during school board committee meetings Monday night that the requirement would be lifted in a decision that “complies with the Health and Safety Plan.” He told the Finance Committee that notice went to the district’s principals Monday and will be more broadly disseminated on Tuesday. The change will go into effect Wednesday. However, he ...

COVID level drops for a day

On Wednesday, Warren County moved down from a high level of community COVID-19 transmission. On Thursday, the county bumped back up from substantial to high. But, for that day, the county was not in the red. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it was the first time in at least a month. Daily data was available back to Jan. 24. “CDC looks at two numbers — total new cases and percent positivity — to determine the level of community transmission,” according to the CDC website — www.cdc.gov. “Total new cases... to calculate this number, CDC ...

CDC: Many healthy Americans can take a break from masks

Most Americans live in places where healthy people, including students in schools, can safely take a break from wearing masks under new U.S. guidelines released Friday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention outlined the new set of measures for communities where COVID-19 is easing its grip, with less of a focus on positive test results and more on what's happening at hospitals. The new system greatly changes the look of the CDC's risk map and puts more than 70% of the U.S. population in counties where the coronavirus is posing a low or medium threat to hospitals. Those are ...