Fayette County moves into substantial spread level
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified Fayette County as a county with substantial COVID-19 spread.
Fayette County joins 50 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties experiencing substantial or high spread of the virus, including Washington and Greene.
The CDC recommends that people who live in counties with substantial spread should wear masks inside public places, even if they are vaccinated.
Areas are considered to have substantial spread if they are experiencing 50 to 100 cases per 100,000 people, and 8% to 10% of people tested are positive.
In Fayette County, there are roughly 52 cases per 100,000 and a positivity rate of 5.39%.
The county reported 67 new cases during the seven-day period from Aug. 1 through Aug. 7, an increase of 219%. However, there were no new deaths reported during that time.
Currently, there is no mask mandate in Pennsylvania, and Gov. Tom Wolf said he does not plan to issue one.
Instead, masking policies are up to school districts, businesses, and local municipal governments to determine and implement.
The COVID-19 delta variant has spurred another surge of the virus across the country.
The CDC and other health organizations have emphasized that getting vaccinated is the best way for people to slow community transmission of the virus.
According to the CDC, about 46% of residents in Fayette County have been fully vaccinated. In Greene County, roughly 39% of residents have gotten their vaccines, while about 50.5% of Washington County residents are fully vaccinated.