The Mercer County Health Department (MCHD) on Tuesday announced the 38th, 39th and 40th residents from Mercer County to test positive for COVID-19 (coronavirus). The 38th case is a male in his 70s, the 39th is a male in his 20s, and the 40th is a female in her 60s. Of the 40 positive cases that Mercer County has had since testing began, as of this date, nine cases are isolating at home and three cases are hospitalized. All other cases have completed their isolation period set forth by IDPH and are no longer being actively followed by MCHD.
“We’ve seen 11 positive cases since July 16 which is the most positives that Mercer County has encountered in a 6-day period since the beginning of the testing,” said Carla Ewing, Administrator. “We are asking all of our community to practice what we know slows down the advancement of the virus – physical distancing 6 feet, wearing a face covering, washing your hands frequently, minimizing social gatherings, and the other guidelines set forth by IDPH and the CDC.”
All active cases and close contacts are being monitored by the Mercer County Health Department Communicable Disease staff. For COVID-19, a close contact is defined as any individual who was within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to positive specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated. The Mercer County Health Department will reach out to all known close contacts of each positive case.