Yates County exceeds last year's cases

YATES COUNTY--COVID cases for December are on track to double compared to December, 2020 in Yates County according to Public Health Director Sara Christensen. Christensen informed the county legislature during the Monday, Dec. 13 meeting there have been 39 new cases since Friday alone with a seven-day positivity rate of 9.4, which is classified as high.
"We are seeing a spike, we have had total cases just for December at 215, last year there were 222 investigated for the whole month. It could be double that by the end of the month. But we will see," Christensen said after the meeting.
In Yates County, there are 98 active cases with seven people in the hospital and 238 people in isolation or quarantine.
"We are encouraging everyone eligible to get a COVID booster to do so," said Christensen.
The health department is holding two COVID vaccination and booster clinics every week and it was recently announced that the state will be holding multiple vaccination clinics in the near future in Yates.
"We are still working on the details of that," said Christensen.
Despite the increasing attention of the Omicron variant, which is believed to be more contagious than Delta, Delta is still the primary strain locally.
"I am not aware of having Omicron in Yates County at this point, so it is still Delta that is the primary strain locally and throughout the country," Christensen mentioned.
Monday also marked the first day of Gov. Kathy Hochul's new regulation that all businesses and venues either receive proof of vaccination or require masking, something the local health department will be tasked with enforcing.
"As a public health department we are tasked with so many different things right now... with vaccinations and outreach, now enforcement is us as well, so we have set up a phone message line where the community can leave a message if they have a concern about a (business or venue)," Christensen stated.
Christensen added the department is also available for local businesses to help explain the new regulations and what they require.
"I've gotten some questions from businesses regarding the details and there is (a little bit of confusion.) There is no mixing, it is either one or the other. Everyone is masked or everyone is proved to be fully vaccinated," Christensen answered.
The legislature also unanimously approved a public hearing for a weapons ban on county-owned and leased property to be set for Dec. 29. A copy of the law is not currently available, as the legislature also decided to alter slightly some of the wording of the proposed law. According to county officials, a copy of the law will be made available when a public notice on the meeting is issued.