The number of weekly new COVID-19 cases in the Roanoke area has doubled over the past month.
The Roanoke City-Alleghany Health District recorded 888 cases over the past week. A month ago that figure was 421.
COVID-19-related hospitalizations have also been increasing, according to district director Dr. Cynthia Morrow. “It’s important to note that for us across the board, our rates of infection, our rates of hospitalization and our deaths are overwhelmingly in individuals who are not yet vaccinated,” she told reporters Tuesday. About half of the district’s new cases are in people under the age of 35, likely because of lower vaccination rates in that age group, Morrow said.
About 15,000 vaccine doses were administered over the past week in the district that covers the Roanoke Valley and parts of the Alleghany Highlands. The majority have been booster doses. Given the increase in cases and continuing demand for vaccine, Morrow expects the community vaccination center at Valley View Mall in Roanoke to remain in operation into the spring.
Seventy-four district residents were hospitalized because of complications related to COVID-19 as of Monday. That’s up from 55 the Monday before. The district recorded three COVID-related deaths over the past week, bringing the total to 680.
Morrow said testing has not identified any omicron variant cases in the district, or anywhere else in Virginia. But she added it’s likely just a matter of time until cases appear. “What we do know about it so far is that it appears to be more transmissible. When there are high levels of disease activity we will face the ongoing threat of these emerging variants,” Morrow said. “It is yet one more stark reminder of how malleable this nasty virus is.”
