COVID-19 Case counts and hospitalization numbers had been declining in Duval County, but in recent weeks those rates have been trending in the wrong direction.
Prayers and well-wishes have been pouring in for City Council Member Ju’Coby Pittman after it was announced that she was in an intensive care unit battling the coronavirus.
Pittman’s vaccine status has not been made public, but she has been a vocal supporter of the COVID-19 vaccine.
“We don’t know that she was vaccinated, but if she was, she’s really outside of the norm in terms of the outcomes of people who have been vaccinated against this virus,” said Dr. Sunil Joshi, president of the Duval County Medical Society Foundation.
Joshi said getting the COVID-19 vaccine remains the best thing you can do to protect yourself and your loved ones, even with new variants circulating.
According to data nonprofit Covid Act Now, about 47% of Duval County residents are fully vaccinated. Daily new cases have been trending upwards, with 20 people per 100,000 testing positive, although it’s more difficult to track trends because Florida has switched to reporting new data weekly rather than daily.
ICU bed utilization has remained relatively stable.
“We need to see if this uptick in hospitalization continues,” Joshi said. “We may need to look at changing our behaviors. And of course, we’re going to follow the lead of the CDC.”
Contact Sydney Boles at sboles@wjct.org, or on Twitter at @sydneyboles.
