Even as Carroll County has had its risk level for Covid-19 decreased by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to low, deaths in the county have continued at a high level considering the small population base. Three more deaths were reported by the Arkansas Department of Health for the week ending March 7, bringing the county’s total to 97.
While the omicron surge that began in December has been tapering off, deaths have continued at a high level. Health officials said it often takes several weeks or longer before someone dies from complications of the virus, as reporting of deaths is sometimes delayed, so not all deaths are in the time period when they are reported.
ADH figures show the total number of deaths climbed from 87 to 94 in February, and tied with October 2021, which also saw seven deaths reported in the county. In September 2021 during the delta variant surge, nine Covid deaths were reported by ADH.
According to The New York Times Covid tracker website, Carroll County’s active cases are down 34 percent, but deaths are up 88 percent for the 14-day period ending March 7.
For the week ending March 7, ADH showed Carroll County with 34 active cases and 31 new cases. Due to the large number of free test kits that have been distributed in the area and state, new and active cases could be underestimated. But hospitalization rates have also been decreasing indicating that the surge is on a decline.
The CDC recently added a website that identifies Covid-19 risk levels on a county basis. Carroll County’s risk level has been dropped from extremely high risk to high risk and now is at low risk. CDC considers mask wearing optional in counties with low risk, which represents about 70 percent of the counties in the nation.
CDC still recommends people stay up to date with vaccines and get tested if they have any symptoms.
“People with symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID-19 should wear a mask,” CDC states in its Covid by County website. “People may choose to mask at any time.”
Dr. Dan Bell, co-founder of the ECHO Clinic, said while our county numbers are coming down, they are not zero.
“There are probably situations where you should wear a mask,” Bell said. “Everyone should use their own judgment and do what their heart tells them to do. If you want to be cautious, be cautious. There is nothing wrong with being cautious. There could be harm from being too cavalier.”
Bell and his wife, Suzie, have been traveling out of state recently visiting relatives. Since there are still other areas of the country where Covid rates are still high, and one can end up around people from many different areas when traveling, they still mask up when going into public places on the road.
“We’ve even flown a few times,” Bell said. “But I wouldn’t want to be on a cruise ship, that’s for sure.”