Harford County Tops 9K Cases Of Coronavirus

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — More than 9,000 people in Harford County have tested positive for the coronavirus, state health officials reported Tuesday. After a single-day increase of 48 cases, there are 9,005 confirmed cases of the virus in Harford County, according to the Maryland Department of Health.

A total of 169 deaths in Harford County have been attributed to COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, an increase of two in the past day.

Harford County Health Officer Dr. David Bishai and Deputy Health Officer Marcy Austin spoke about the virus at the 7 p.m. County Council meeting along with Colin Ward, Upper Chesapeake Health's vice president of population health and clinical integration. They said there were promising signs, but people needed to practice vigilance.

"We are not through the last wave of the pandemic," Bishai said. "We’re not done yet, but we do see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Vaccinations have begun in Harford County, where the health department began providing the COVID-19 vaccine to first responders this week, after administering it to those who would be providing the shot to others last week.

"The relief is coming, but the vaccine is not here in the large numbers that we would need to put the brakes on [it] this month," Bishai said. "The only way to dodge those mass funerals" is to practice "good behavior" like hand-washing and social distancing, he said.

Hospitals received the vaccine in mid-December. Upper Chesapeake team members who received the Pfizer vaccine in December will get their second booster Wednesday, pushing them to 90 protection from the virus, Ward said.

Here's a look at coronavirus in Maryland as of Tuesday, Jan. 5:

Find more on the coronavirus case count in Harford County.

See Also:

• Harford Inmate Tests Positive For Coronavirus: Report
• MD Coronavirus Positivity Rate Climbs Above 9 Percent
• Hogan Shifts Vaccine Plan, Hopes To Overcome Slow Distribution
• Havre de Grace Police Officers Get Coronavirus Vaccine