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Athens Co. Confirms 90 COVID-19 Cases Since Start Of Pandemic

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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Athens County has now had 90 cases of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic after 11 additional cases were confirmed Thursday.

The Athens City-County Health Department announced the cases in a press release sent July 9.

No demographic information was provided by the health department regarding the cases.

The health department said after the first confirmed case on March 26 that investigations into patients’ close contacts would be conducted.

A graphic shows coronavirus cases in Athens County
[Athens City-County Health Department]
There are 56 known active cases in the county as of Thursday. There are 33 people presumed to have recovered. There has been one death related to COVID-19 in the county that happened in March.

Anyone experiencing respiratory symptoms is asked to call their primary care physician, urgent care, or emergency department before arriving for care to let them know that they believe they are experiencing symptoms related to COVID-19 virus.

The Ohio Department of Health announced 61,331 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 statewide as of Thursday at 2 p.m. There have been 8,570 hospitalizations and 3,006 reported deaths.

The DOH also updated its county risk level alert map on Thursday, elevating Athens County to a Level 2. The designation means there is increasing exposure and spread of coronavirus in the county.

The state is using seven indicators to track the level of exposure and spread of COVID-19:

  1. New cases per capita
  2. Sustained increase new cases
  3. Proportion of cases in non-congregate setting
  4. Sustained Increase in ER visits
  5. Sustained Increase Outpatient
  6. Sustained Increase New COVID-19 Hospital admissions
  7. ICU Occupancy

County Risk Level Alert Map
[ODH]
The DOH makes the following recommendations to protect yourself from illness:

  • Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds; dry hands with a clean towel or air dry hands.
  • Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer when soap and water are unavailable.
  • Cover your mouth with a tissue or sleeve when sneezing or coughing. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
  • Stay home when you are sick.
  • Avoid contact with people who are sick.

Ohio’s coronavirus call center is open to answer questions from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. The hotline number is 1-833-4-ASK-ODH or 1-833-427-5634. More information is available at coronavirus.ohio.gov.