Page last updated on December 13, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Hi, it's Mayor John Hamilton, it's Monday, December 13th, 2021. Quick update for the public on the pandemic. So, things are not going well. I hate to be the bearer of that news, but it's probably no surprise to you, but on this day, we're recognizing some really negative trends. We actually held a press conference on Friday, which we were not scheduled to hold. It was an off week, but we felt it was really important to get the facts out. The pandemic is surging again, among us, as the governor said, this is a pandemic, a surge among the unvaccinated. This is a surge of unvaccinated people that we're seeing in the hospitals and we're seeing our caseloads really rise to levels that we haven’t seen since before the vaccines were available last winter.
Hospitalizations have actually exceeded what they were in the state, except for more than a year ago. We're seeing that locally as well. It may be the worst surge we've had. Again, this is a surge of the unvaccinated, so please get vaccinated and boosted. That is what will protect us. We do not want to keep losing people to the hospital or to death from this disease, which is preventable and manageable, but we're seeing really a significant surge and we're still worried about the weeks ahead. So, I'm sorry to give that news. I'm exhausted with all this. I know you are too, but getting vaccinated, getting boosted, using masks, staying separated. You really have to, again, imagine that all of us are carrying the virus, it's around us a lot, even if you don't feel sick or you've had a test not too long ago, but you just have to think you could be carrying the virus. So be careful, be protective of each other and that's how we'll keep our families and our people safe.
We had the highest weekly total of positive cases in our workforce ever, 11 cases last week. And we're looking at a December that may break the record too for that. So, there are a lot of signals. Omicron, we don't even know if it's here yet. We don't know what that will do, but this is a surge of the Delta variant and causing real disease and sickness and death among the unvaccinated. So please, please, please look at the data, talk to people and get vaccinated and boosted, if you're already vaccinated.
I'm really sorry to be the bearer of this news, but we're going to continue to follow the science and do the things we can to protect everybody, both in our workforce and in our public. Monroe County continues to have among the best records in the state of Indiana, but we are in the middle of a surge in this state, so please be careful. We'll keep updated with regular press conferences, or you can check on the website. Please get vaccinated, there are lots of places to do that. Thanks again, stay safe and we'll keep you updated.