GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — The Kent County Health Department can't quite place a finger on why exactly daily COVID-19 cases are spiking. Are more people showing up to get tested?
Supervising epidemiologist Brian Hartl doesn't think so.
"We're still seeing about 3,000 tests per day," says Hartl. "Which is maybe increased slightly from the past few months."
With the positivity rate of those tests more than doubling to 6% in recent weeks and hospitalizations on the rise, could symptoms be getting worse? The Health Department says it's seen cases trending that way.
"Lately a lot of people have been symptomatic, so they know they're sick with those symptoms of COVID-19," explains Hartl. "And that drives them to go get a test."
Hartl says a common topic at daily meetings in the department is employees reporting fewer people wearing face masks in public. As cases flare, he stresses now is not the time to relax on the precautions.
"It's more important than ever to wear a mask, to try to social distance," he warns. "We're obviously seeing really widespread transmission in our community and those are really good preventative measures."
And that includes your holiday plans this year, whether you plan to travel or connect with family at home.
"I think we tend to let our guard down sometimes when we're around people that we know. A small group of friends or family, we might take those masks off inside," says Hartl. "Right now, with what we're seeing in terms of transmission rates in our community, we really want to think twice about that. Is it worth the risk this year?"
If you do test positive, Hartl says at least a 10-day isolation period is as important as ever to contain the spread.
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