Montco confirms 4 cases of UK variant

Two weeks ago, officials identified the county’s first documented case of the B.1.1.7 U.K. variant,

NORRISTOWN >> Montgomery County health officials reported that additional cases of a more contagious coronavirus variant, first documented in the United Kingdom, have been identified in the county.

“There are now a total of four, four confirmed cases of the U.K. variant in Montgomery County. All four cases received investigation and contact tracing,” county Commissioners’ Chairwoman Dr. Valerie Arkoosh revealed during a weekly news briefing on Wednesday.

Two weeks ago, officials identified the county’s first documented case of the B.1.1.7 U.K. variant, a 30-year-old bartender who worked at an unidentified restaurant. Officials announced three additional cases of the variant on Wednesday.

“We have confirmed additional cases linked to some of these individuals. Therefore, there are additional confirmed COVID-19 cases that we consider probable for the variant strain. But this has not been confirmed by genomic sequencing of the virus from these individuals. Genomic sequencing, which is a laboratory test that can confirm whether or not this is one of the variants, remains very limited,” Arkoosh explained.

“All of this signals to us that the variant is likely much more widespread in the community than can be confirmed through lab testing,” Arkoosh added. “According to the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the variant spreads more easily and quickly than other variants and this is another reminder that we must all continue to wear our masks, maintain social distancing, keep our hands clean and away from our face and avoid social gatherings.”

The four individuals testing positive for the U.K. variant range in age from the mid-20s to the early 70s and none of the four individuals had as yet received a COVID-19 vaccination. None of the individuals reported major underlying medical issues, they all reported mild to moderate symptoms and none required hospitalization, officials said.

“None of these cases reported domestic or international travel, attendance at community or mass events, exposure at a long-term care facility or at a congregate care setting, no sports exposures or other known high-risk exposures,” Arkoosh explained.

Arkoosh, who as a physician has been at the forefront of the county’s efforts to combat COVID-19 and provide citizens with the latest information regarding the COVID-19 outbreak, indicated scientific information regarding the U.K. variant continues to evolve.

“I think the data from the U.K. does strongly suggest that it is about 1½ times more contagious than the original variant. And the modeling that I have seen for the United States suggests that it would be in March that we would really start to see widespread evidence of this variant taking hold,” Arkoosh explained.

“People should just be aware that a variant that most data supports is more contagious than the original variant is in our midst and that people need to continue to be very, very careful with their mask wearing, their handwashing and their social distancing,” added Arkoosh, who was joined at the news briefing by fellow Commissioner Kenneth E. Lawrence Jr.

Officials said COVID-19 vaccines continue to be in extremely limited supply and they urged residents to have patience as the vaccine rollout continues.

Three weeks ago, state health officials expanded coronavirus vaccination protocols, opening the door for everyone 65 years and older, and those 16 to 64 with specific underlying medical conditions, to receive the vaccine.

Those categories were added to Phase 1A of the state’s vaccination program. Phase 1A previously included only healthcare workers and those residing in long-term care facilities. With the expanded definitions for the 1A group, county officials estimated that about 250,000 additional people qualify for vaccination in Montgomery County as part of Phase 1A.

Appointments are required to receive the vaccine. All those eligible for the vaccine in Phase 1A can pre-register to receive the vaccine through the county health department. The pre-registration link can be found at www.montcopa.org/COVID-19 under the green vaccination information button.

Last week, the Montgomery County Office of Public Health opened a vaccination clinic at Norristown High School to serve those who have appointments to receive their first dose of the vaccine.

The county received only 1,000 first doses last week and had administered all of those first doses as of Tuesday. As a result, the Norristown clinic will be closed for the rest of this week. Arkoosh said the county health department expects to receive 3,900 first doses later this week and the Norristown clinic is expected to reopen on Monday.

“The good news is that we have been receiving our second doses. We received 5,800 second doses this week and continue to have the appropriate number of second doses to administer to those who got their first dose from us,” Arkoosh said.

Those receiving their second dose of the vaccine are being served at a clinic hosted by the Montgomery County Community College campus in Whitpain.

Beginning this week, those who have pre-registered for a vaccine through the county will receive a weekly e-mail to keep them updated on the vaccination progress and what to expect when it’s their turn to receive the vaccine.

As of Wednesday, 153,502 people had pre-registered on the county site for an appointment.

“At this time, depending upon when you registered and depending upon how much vaccine we receive, it could easily take up to 12 weeks or longer before you hear back from us about actually scheduling an appointment,” Arkoosh explained.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported on Wednesday that 17,363 county residents had received the full two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines through Feb. 9. Another 61,689 residents had received the first dose of the vaccine, according to state data.

Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses to achieve optimum protection.

As officials hope to ramp up the vaccination program, they reported on Wednesday that 151 additional people tested positive for the virus, bringing the county’s total number of cases to 44,583 since March 7, when the first two cases of the virus were identified in the county. Thirteen of the new cases were individuals who resided in longterm care facilities.

Officials also reported 10 new COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday, bringing the county’s death toll to 1,176 since the pandemic began in March.

The overall 14-day COVID-19 positivity rate for the county, as of Feb. 4, was 7.54% which was a decrease from the 7.93% positivity rate recorded during the previous 14-day period ending Jan. 28, according to county data.

Health officials believe having a positivity rate less than 5% indicates a county is controlling the spread of the virus and keeping it suppressed.

On Wednesday, 239 individuals with COVID-19 were in the county’s nine hospitals and 35 of the current patients require ventilators. Those figures represented a reduction from the

255 people hospitalized last week.

Testing is available for all county residents and those who work in the county and want or need to be tested. The county has established outdoor walk-up testing sites in Pottstown, Norristown, Lansdale, Willow Grove, Ardmore and Green Lane to accommodate those who want to be tested.

The six county-run sites provide self-administered tests at no cost, although insurance will be billed if you have it. The sites do require an appointment for testing.

The six sites are open Monday through Friday, weather permitting and at varying hours. Same-day appointments can be made weekdays starting at 7 a.m. by visiting www.montcopa. org/COVID-19 and clicking on the county testing information button. Residents can also register for a test at any of the six sites by calling 610-970-2937 beginning at 8:30 a.m. daily.

In Pottstown, the testing site is located at the county’s Office of Public Health Pottstown Health Center at 364 King St.

In Norristown, a testing site is located on the parking lot of the Delaware Valley Community Health Norristown Regional Health Center at 1401 DeKalb St.

In Lansdale, a testing site is located at 421 Main St. Another testing site is located at Deep Creek and Snyder roads in the Green Lane Park area.

In Ardmore, a testing site is located at 114 W. Lancaster Avenue.

In Willow Grove, a testing site is at First Baptist Church - Crestmont, 1678 Fairview Ave. This Saturday, Feb. 13, the Willow Grove testing site will be open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Appointments for Saturday tests can be reserved online only starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 12.