According to “COVID-19 delta variant cases continue to rise in Howard County” written by Tyler Juranovich, cases in Howard County, as stated in the title, are once again rising. While cases aren’t nearly as high as they were last winter, cases have nearly doubled since this time last month. ICU occupation last winter was up to 70% and is now back up to 40%. The county’s 10-day average is now 84 confirmed cases per day which is up from a 10-day average of 40 around August 15, 2021. Hospitalizations of positive cases have gone from 15-20 per day to 35-36 per day. According to Commissioner Paul Wyman, 95% of all COVID hospitalizations are unvaccinated patients. He said that you can still get the virus if you’re vaccinated, but symptoms are much less severe, chances of hospitalization are much lower, chances of needing a ventilator are even lower, and chances of dying are lower yet. Wyman urges residents to get vaccinated. The hospitals are headed back to the stress they were in this past winter, and it is up to us to help them in any ways we can (i.e. getting vaccinated, wearing masks, avoiding large gatherings). In the county, 40% of residents are fully vaccinated and 43.4% have received their first dose. These statistics are just under the state average of 46.2% fully vaccinated residents. If we all do our part, this pandemic will be over soon, but if not everyone is willing to do their part, our lives could return to how they were this time last year. For more information, visit this story in the September 1, 2021 edition of the Kokomo Tribune.