Two days after reporting a significant spike in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations — as well as the discovery of a variant originating from India in Moffat County — Memorial Regional Health is reporting Friday a significant spike in the positivity rate of those tested at MRH in the last week.

During the week of May 17 to May 23, MRH tested 69 people, with 21 of those testing positive for a 30.43% positivity rate, which was a significant spike from 10.34% positivity rate the previous week.

MRH Vice President of Operations Jennifer Riley said this is not due to MRH testing more residents, as MRH averages roughly 62 tests per week. The week of May 17-23 was no exception with the 69 total tests.

The spike in positivity rate in Moffat County follows a similar trend in Western Colorado, with Routt County reporting 39 new cases in the last two weeks, while Mesa County is reporting 90 new cases in the same two-week span.

“Given our county’s below-average vaccination rate, a significant percentage of people remain vulnerable to contracting and spreading the virus,” Riley said in a news release. “The more people who contract the virus, the greater the likelihood that the number of people who become severely ill will increase. This will again impact the healthcare systems, businesses (if an employee is COVID-positive, he/she cannot work), and general livelihood.”

Aside from the rise in positivity rate, MRH reported that three patients remain admitted to the COVID-19 unit. One COVID-positive patient was transferred to a higher level of care Friday morning.

To keep track of COVID-19 data, visit the county’s dashboard here.

Managing Editor Joshua Carney can be reached at 970-875-1790 or jcarney@craigdailypress.com.

jcarney@craigdailypress.com