New COVID-19 cases continue climb as Delta variant spreads

Many libraries say they are out of the Abbott at-home COVID-19 test kits that they were giving away this week.

Delaware’s new COVID-19 cases continue to climb, with an average of 147 new cases on Thursday,

That’s up from 20 new cases a day on June 20, the low point before the Delta variant began to prey on the unvaccinated and caused the number to rise again.

Delaware’s Division of Public Health issues a weekly report of new cases, determined by a seven-day average.

On June 30, the state said there was an average of 90 new cases a day.

That same day, the state said there were 32 people hospitalized. On Friday, it said there were 71, with eight in critical condition.

Because of the increasing numbers, Gov. John Carney on Tuesday issued new guidelines, saying the unvaccinated should be tested once a week to try to identify and stop the spread of the virus.

The state also said those who are not vaccinated should be tested five to seven days after being exposed to someone with COVID-19 and that they should isolate at home immediately if they are unvaccinated and develop symptoms of COVID-19, as well as quarantine immediately at home if exposed to the virus.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends fully vaccinated people get tested three to five days after being exposed to someone with COVID. Fully vaccinated individuals do not need to quarantine after exposure, the state said.

Delaware has seen 112,298 positive cases of COVID-19 reported since March 11, 2020. The state also has said 1,833 Delawareans have died. No new deaths were reported this week.

At the same time,  the centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 73.2% of Delawareans ages 18+ have received at least one dose of the vaccine.  Among Delawareans 12+, 534,132 have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 474,050 Delawareans are fully vaccinated. 

As of Friday morning, 1,067,747 doses of the vaccine have been administered.

The state had announced Tuesday that most Delaware libraries would have take-home COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits that any resident could ask for. The Abbott BinaxNOW tests include two tests that give results in as little as 15 minutes. A random survey Friday of upstate and downstate libraries found that most are out of the kits.

Testing is available around the state at drug stores, health centers and more. Go here to look for a place to be tested.

Betsy Price

Betsy Price is a Wilmington freelance writer who has 40 years of experience, including 15 at The News Journal in Delaware.