Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear gave an update on COVID-19 in the Commonwealth Wednesday, reporting 2,592 new cases.
Numbers of new reported cases continue to decline, according to the governor, who says they’re excited to get more vaccines to Kentuckians who want them as fast as possible—the evidence of the vaccine working is already prevalent in the decrease in deaths in long term care facilities.
Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack says they’ll be changing how their vaccine data is reported, to give a more transparent showing of how many people are being vaccinated and how quickly.
He once again urged everyone to have patience as the state works their way through the phase list, with most regional sites still working in phases 1A and 1B. Dr. Stack cautioned people about getting together for big Super Bowl parties this weekend, saying to keep any parties to two households or less if you do gather.
The positivity rate is at 8.53 percent, and 106 counties are in the ‘red’ on the incidence rate map—better than previous maps, but still needing to come down. Governor Beshear reported 51 new deaths, which he calls heart breaking, and puts the death toll at 3,863.
The Tennessee Department of Health is reporting 1,856 cases there, along with 133 new deaths—bringing the number of Tennesseans who have died due to COVID-19 up to 10,033.