OKEECHOBEE — Problems with labs not reporting COVID-19 positive results to the Florida Department of Health in a timely manner are making it more difficult for FDOH to conduct contract tracing, according to a report given by Tiffiany Collins of FDOH in Okeechobee County at the Dec. 3 meeting of the Okeechobee County Commission.

Collins said so far, 2,061 residents of Okeechobee County have tested positive for COVID-19 and 44 people have died – about 2% of all positive cases.

There are some problems in reporting, she added.

“We are looking at all of the death certificates coming in and the lab reports coming in,” she said. FDOH has reported some labs for not reporting results to FDOH in a timely manner. When a test is positive, that result is supposed to be reported to FDOH within 24 hours, she explained. She said they have seen some death certificates which indicate the patient was covid-positive, and no lab report to go with it. That means, “the lab did not report the covid positive to us,” she said.

She said about 7% of all cases in the county were related to longterm care facilities and 11% were related to correctional facilities.

The positivity rate continues to rise, she said. In the past two weeks, the county has 158 new cases and 12.3% of those tested have been positive. This makes it very difficult to do contract tracing to find out where the person may have been exposed to the virus, she said. “At 10% we basically have community-wide transmission,” she said.

To date, for the 13,565 total COVID-19 tests in Okeechobee, overall positivity 15.1%.

Some individuals have been tested more than once, she added. Additional tests for the same person are added to the total until a person tests positive. Once a person tests positive, future tests for that individual are not added to the total.

She said the county health department, 1728 NW Ninth Ave., offers tests Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for first responders and for those who have symptoms. Those who believe they have symptoms should contact their doctors and/or the health department, she explained. The health department phone number is 863-462-5800.

As of Dec. 3, she said nine Okeechobee County residents are hospitalized related to COVID-19. She said 61 of Raulerson Hospital’s 100 beds are in use, and six of the hospital’s eight ICU beds are in use.

She said those most at risk should they contract the virus are men over the age of 65 and those who are obese.

Collins said they are working on the plans for distribution of the vaccine when it becomes available. “If you have not already gotten your flu shot, get it now,” she added.

She also encouraged everyone to continue to wear cloth face coverings in public places, maintain at least 6 feet of distance from those not in your immediate household, and wash your hands frequently and thoroughly.

Collins advised, “Avoid the “three C’s”:
• Crowded areas with more than 10 people;
• Closed spaces with poor ventilation; and,
• Close contact with individuals outside your household.

Dr. J. Michael Adelberg, medical director for Okeechobee County Fire Rescue, Okeechobee City Fire Department and the All County Medical Ambulance Service, encouraged commissioners to promote health precautions to slow the spread of the disease but argued against closing businesses.

“I am part of a giant blog of crtical care providers,” he said. “As doctors learn more about treating the virus, the death rate is going down because of the techniques developed by caregivers,” he added.

“Shutting down the country didn’t work. It put hundreds of thousands of people out of work. It ruined people’s lives.”

He said shutting down businesses also resulted in deaths. “The suicide rate, domestic violence, drug use ... went sky high,” he explained. “Quarantine fatigue is real.”

He said hand washing is critical. “This thing lives 3 to 5 days on an elevator button.”

When a vaccine is available, it will also be important to encourage everyone to be vaccinated, Adelberg added. He said health care providers are concerned that people will be afraid to get the vaccine when it becomes available.

“Anybody remember polio? Hell of a vaccine. It took 20 years for it to go away. People were afraid to take it,” he said. Even though the longterm phase of the vaccine trials has not been done “because we don’t have time,” he said even if the vaccine is only 50% effective, it will help boost the herd immunity.

Until a vaccine is available, social distancing, wearing a mask and washing your hands make a lot of sense, he said.

Adelberg said everyone understands wearing a mask, but some people are not careful to remove the masks property and wash their hands or use hand sanitizer afterwards. He said it is important to wash your hands after removing your mask because whatever germs the mask might have caught are on that mask and you don’t want to spread them to anything you might touch.

In other business discussed at the meeting, Treasure Coast Food Bank will distribute food on Dec. 12 at the Agri-Civic Center. More details about the visit will be announced as they become available.