Three Rivers Public Health Department moved its COVID-19 risk dials for Dodge County, Saunders County and its jurisdiction back to high and reported three new deaths this week.
The reported deaths related to COVID-19 are a man in his 70s, a woman in her 80s and a man in his 80s. All three were from Dodge County and had underlying health conditions.
“COVID-19 is continuing to spread in Nebraska, and we need everyone to take precautions as we transition into cold and flu season,” Three Rivers Executive Director Terra Uhing said in a press release. “We need everyone to avoid the three C’s — crowded places, close contact and confined spaces.”
The risk dial, which debuted in mid-July, is updated every Wednesday to show the risk of COVID-19 in Dodge, Washington and Saunders counties, as well as the entire jurisdiction.
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The dial is color-coded, with green being low, yellow being moderate, orange being high and red being severe. The dials are also given a number range, with low being below .5, moderate being .5 to 2, high being 2 to 3.5 and severe being 3.5 to 4.
Dodge County and the jurisdiction were previously moved from the moderate category to high on Aug. 19, with Saunders County moving up the next week.
Although the jurisdiction moved back down on Sept. 2, Dodge and Saunders counties remained in high until the next week.
This is the first time since then that counties or the jurisdiction have moved to the high category, with the jurisdiction moving from 1.88 to 2 this week.
Dodge County moved from 1.75 to 2, while Saunders County moved from 1.88 to 2. Washington County remained stable at 1.88 from last week.
Three Rivers takes different variables into the risk dials’ score, including overall positivity rates, weekly positive rates, weekly numbers of new cases and overall testing being done throughout the county or jurisdiction.
Uhing said the jurisdiction’s increase was due to an increase in the positivity rate, number of cases and regional hospitalizations; Dodge County’s was due to an increase in the weekly positivity rate and number of cases, as well as a decrease in weekly testing; while Saunders County’s was due to an increase in the positivity rate, weekly positivity rate, regional hospitalizations and community-spread cases.
“We are seeing a lot of cases tied to gatherings in both small and large settings — Please stay home if you are sick or if someone in your family is sick,” she said in a press release. “Additionally, we know that wearing a mask works, so please wear your mask consistently.”
Three Rivers reported Wednesday that the jurisdiction had a total of 2,795 COVID-19 cases, with 1,620 from Dodge County, 699 from Saunders County and 474 from Washington County.
Overall, the jurisdiction has conducted 24,932 tests, with 13,127 from Dodge County, 6,377 from Saunders County and 5,276 from Washington County. There have been 34 total deaths and 790 recoveries.
While moderate guidelines say to consider staying home for most of the time with caution for non-essential travel or work, high guidelines say to stay at home unless traveling for work, medical care or food.
Additionally, high guidelines say to have the smallest number of contacts feasible and strongly recommend the usage of masks, as opposed to suggesting when unable to distance.
At-home guidance changes include the recommendation of daily temperature checks and to monitor the health of anyone in a household with COVID-like symptoms. Additionally, it recommends contacting a healthcare provider if sick.