FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky reported the highest number of coronavirus patients in the ICU since May on Wednesday as the state heads toward another record-setting week in terms of cases.
Gov. Andy Beshear maintained his stance not to institute any new restrictions to slow down the latest escalation, and instead, he encouraged people to follow the guidance that’s already out there.
“We’ve got to make sure we continue to have the humility that we are in the midst of an epidemic, that it can strike, that it can be deadly,” Beshear said. “And simply, this concept that we gotta live with it now and we should go back to normal, we can’t go back to normal, not in the midst of this pandemic. We will get there, but it’s going to take time and we gotta stay strong.”
According to Wednesday's report, 161 COVID-19 patients are in the ICU. While that’s only nine percent of the total number of ICU beds based on numbers from the Kentucky Hospital Association, there are only around 326 available ICU beds in the state.
Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack said with the fall flu season coming, it’s even more important to take the coronavirus seriously so it doesn’t overwhelm hospitals.
“It really is like a casino where the virus is the casino and the house always wins. If you take your eye off the ball, I don’t know where it will hit and who will get hit hardest, but I do know this: It’ll come and it’ll get us and that’s not in any of our best interest,” Stack said. “I look forward to the opportunity to celebrate when we finally put this behind us but we’ve got a lot of months ahead of us still to get through.”
Kentucky reported 926 new cases Wednesday, but the total number of cases included in the report was inflated by a backlog of cases from the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, according to Beshear. The total number of cases reported was 2,398, by far the most Kentucky has reported in a day, but Beshear said the 1,472 cases from Fayette County come from the last month or two.
The state’s seven-day positivity rate, which was not affected by the reporting backlog, fell slightly to 4.21 percent.