COVID-19 case counts continue to remain low in the New River Health District.However, Dr. Noelle Bissell – the district’s director – says the area is seeing a trend that has been seen in other parts of the country.
“Most of the cases, the hospitalizations that are being seen are in those who are not yet vaccinated. So, it’s really important to get as many people vaccinated as we can,” she explained.
Unfortunately, Bissell says vaccination rates in the district remain low.
She also confirmed Monday that the Delta variant is circulating in southwest Virginia, but to what extent is still being investigated.
The news comes as Virginia has now fully vaccinated more than half of its overall population against the virus. The state crossed that mark over the weekend.
Virginia has administered more than nine million vaccine doses so far.
The statewide positivity rate remains low as well. That number was 1.6% in Monday's update from the Virginia Department of Health.