Vaccinated people in York, Lancaster, Chester should wear masks indoors, CDC says
Fully vaccinated individuals in York, Lancaster and Chester counties should now wear face coverings in public indoor spaces to slow the alarming rise of the delta variant, state and federal health officials say.
South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control adopted guidance Tuesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that now urges those living in areas with high coronavirus activity to wear masks inside.
The federal agency, which declared in May that fully vaccinated individuals were safe to go maskless in most settings, reversed its claim this week. The nation has experienced a rise in “breakthrough cases,” likely driven by the growing spread of the highly infectious delta variant, which accounts for more than half of all new coronavirus cases.
All but five South Carolina counties are currently experiencing substantial or high transmission, according to the CDC, and are subject to the agency’s recent indoor masking recommendation.
Between July 19 and July 25, York and Lancaster counties reported at least 50 cases per 100,000 people, which is defined as substantial transmission, according to CDC data.
Chester County reported more than 100 cases per 100,000 people, which is defined as high transmission, according to CDC data.
The CDC also released guidance pushing universal masking in schools, regardless of vaccination status.
‘Pandemic of the unvaccinated’
DHEC officials said Wednesday that the agency supports the CDC’s guidance and recommends all South Carolinians, regardless of vaccination status, wear masks when indoors and in public places.
“This is a disheartening setback and we recognize that those who made the decision to get vaccinated may feel the same way,” state epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said during a media briefing. “But the fight is not over.... Right now, the science is telling us that the virus is mutating and taking on different forms, known as variants. That is why we’re seeing increases in cases.”
Bell said she acknowledges that South Carolinians are likely frustrated by the fluctuation in recommendations.
“My hope is that people will be more frustrated by the disease activity in our communities than they will be by the guidance that is changing as necessary because disease activity is surging now at alarming levels,” she said. “We want people to understand the reason that we’re changing this is because we want people to be well protected.”
Fully vaccinated individuals make up a small portion of transmission in South Carolina, Bell said. More than 90% of new cases and deaths in South Carolina, and 86% of hospitalizations, were among those who were not fully vaccinated, she said.
“We hoped that we had reached a point where we could relax the prevention measures,” Bell said. “We thought we were getting to that point. A few short weeks ago, we saw a very substantial decline in disease rates.”
On Tuesday, South Carolina reported 1,105 new coronavirus cases across the state, which Bell said was the highest daily case count since mid-February.
“This past week’s total for cases was a 92.6% increase from the prior week,” she said. “This has turned into a pandemic of the unvaccinated.”
As of Wednesday, 44.4% of eligible South Carolina residents are fully vaccinated, according to data from DHEC. About 50.7% of eligible residents have received at least one dose, the data show.
How quickly is the delta variant spreading in SC?
DHEC officials attribute the recent spike in cases to the delta variant, which has rapidly spread among the unvaccinated or partially vaccinated.
“We know that many individuals who were not fully protected, we’re removing their masks and we’re not continuing to observe the recommendations that apply to them,” Bell said.
As of July 21, officials have identified 70 known cases of the variant in South Carolina, but there are likely far more circulating in the state. The agency sequences only a small fraction of randomly selected positive samples for the variant, DHEC officials said.
“If we don’t increase our vaccination rate quickly, we will continue to experience these rises,” Bell said. “But we can turn the tide, and we can change those devastating outcomes that we’re already seeing.”
York County has the highest percentage of residents fully vaccinated among the three area counties. As of Wednesday, about 40% of the county’s 223,809 individuals eligible for a vaccine have received two doses. And 48% have gotten at least one dose, according to DHEC data.
In Lancaster County, 36% of the county’s 78,456 people eligible for a vaccine have gotten both doses, while 45% have received at least one, DHEC data show.
About 37% of Chester County’s 27,668 people eligible for a vaccine have gotten both doses. About 42% have gotten at least one, according to DHEC data.
This story was originally published July 28, 2021 at 5:53 PM.
