As of Tuesday, the Mississippi State Department of Health said there have been 2,524 cases of COVID-19 reported in the county and 55 deaths due to the disease since the first case was reported locally on March 18.
MSDH reported this week that two deaths had been reported in Coahoma County based on data taken from official death certificates since Dec. 14, 2020. A second one was recently recorded the week of Jan. 3-9.
That averages out to 11.15 percent of the county’s population who have tested positive and a fatality rate of 0.24 percent among the county’s 22,628 residents.
Coahoma County reported a high of 188 new cases on July 25 but saw that number decline to 13 people testing positive the week of Oct. 3. Positive tests climbed to their second highest number on Dec. 12 with 114 new cases.
While the fatality rate is down the community is seeing a rise in the number of cases reported and that ultimately leads to a higher fatality count.
COVID-19 Vaccines
COVID-19 vaccines are available in Mississippi.
Area locations offering COVID-19 vaccinations are:
• Bolivar Medical Center in Bolivar County.
• Delta Health Center in Bolivar County.
• North Sunflower Medical Center in Sunflower County.
• Aaron E. Henry, Tunica Clinic in Tunica County.
Those eligible for the vaccine include healthcare personnel, individuals aged 65 years and older and individuals aged 16-64 years with certain underlying medical conditions.
Coahoma County residents are asked to call their healthcare provider to find out qualifications for getting the vaccine and where they are being administered. Coahoma County residents should not call the Coahoma County Health Department as they do not have the vaccine and are not answering the phone.
Coahoma County reported its first COVID-19 fatality on April 4.
MSDH said Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine began being dispensed in Coahoma County earlier this month and serum was distributed to hospitals and health facilities for those involved in COVID-19 patient care. Long-term care facility residents and staff were next in line as were first responders such as police, fire and ambulance personnel.
CDC has said additional doses of COVID-19 vaccine are expected over the coming weeks, with expansion of vaccination to all healthcare workers in any setting, essential workers, those with chronic diseases and the elderly next in line.
Frantic testing in the community just before school started saw the number of cases in the community and Mississippi skyrocket. That spike has been linked to the end of state and federal assistance that ran out in late July. Those who test positive for the disease can get two weeks – and sometimes longer – of unemployment assistance if they test positive for COVID-19.
Statewide Numbers
Statewide there have been 266,598 cases reported as of Tuesday and 5,852 deaths. That means 9.27 percent of Mississippians have tested positive for COVID-19 and .20 percent of the state’s 2.876 million residents have died.
That averages 3,351 cases over Mississippi’s 82 counties, with Coahoma County well below that average.
Across the nation the Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported 25,152,433 people or 7.66 percent of the nation’s 328.2 million people have contracted the disease and 419,827 or 1.67 percent of those infected have died.
Epidemiologists with the Center for Disease Control have estimated herd immunity – the number need to become infected, survive the disease and become immune to spreading it – would need to hit one-third to curb COVID-19. That means 7,542 people in Coahoma County would have to either contract the disease or be successfully vaccinated to slow the disease locally.
The CDC also says many people – especially those under the age of 19 – often get the disease and do not exhibit symptoms. Mississippi has had no child fatalities under the age of 1-year-old and only two COVID deaths ages 1- to 10-years-old.
Community Concerns
The City of Clarksdale announced the extension of indoor and outdoor gathering, bar capacity and social distancing requirements in March and many of those requirements are still in place.
The Board of Mayor and Commissioners have issued more than an 18 executive orders related to COVID-19. Most in the community are not aware of the requirements other than being asked to wear a mask, practice social distancing and wash their hands.
Those who test positive are being quarantined for two weeks and family members and co-workers can also be quarantined.
Several convenience stores and restaurants in the area have closed after staff became infected. Major grocery stores, retail outlets and fast food restaurants remain open and are hiring replacement workers to fill in for those who test positive.
The pandemic began 316 days ago and at this point 97.8-percent of Coahoma County residents who have caught coronavirus have gotten well. As of Monday MSDH says 222,812 of the state’s confirmed cases have gotten well.
Testing Sites
The Mississippi State Department of Health has ramped up testing procedures across the state and most local healthcare providers offer the test for free and are reimbursed by the state.
The MSDH website listed the following locations offering free COVID-19 testing:
Clarksdale: Fast Pace Health at 662-966-1012.
Clarksdale: Aaron E. Henry CHC at 662-624-4292.
Tunica: Aaron E. Henry CHC at 662-363-3656.
Greenville: Delta Reg-ional Medical Center at 662-725-6000.
Those wanting to be tested must call in advance to prepare the clinic to administer a test.
