COVID Numbers Start To Rise Again In Montgomery County

NORRISTOWN, PA — After months of steady decline appeared to reach something of a plateau, coronavirus cases are rising again in Montgomery County. The percent positivity rate, which was as low as 0.5 percent countywide earlier this month, is now back up to 2.5 percent countywide this week, according to state data.

The notable increase comes as the more contagious delta variant continues to spread nationwide, and in Pennsylvania. The CDC estimates that delta now accounts for 69 percent of new cases statewide.

Cases do still remain low; a positivity rate of below five percent is considered "suppression" of the virus. There were a total of 152 new cases countywide (and 2,393 statewide) over the most recently tracked seven-day period, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health, numbers that are still quite small compared to almost any other point of the pandemic.

"While our numbers overall remain strong, several of our County-wide COVID-19 indicators moved slightly in the wrong direction this past week," Montgomery County Commissioner Val Arkoosh noted in a statement posted on social media. "But our team is continuing to monitor closely."

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This follows a statewide trend, as the positivity rate rose from 1.7 to 2.8 over the past week.

The county's healthcare metrics have also ticked slightly upward over the past week: the average daily number of hospitalizations due to coronavirus in the county increased from 12 to 16. The average daily number of patients on ventilators rose slightly from 1.6 to 1.7, and the percentage of emergency room visits due to COVID symptoms is up from 0.8 to 0.9 percent.

The county's vaccination rate has trended steadily upward, as 76 percent of all residents 12 and older have received at least their first shot (if you haven't yet received the vaccine, learn more and sign up here).