The Warren County Health Department is warning that people need to take a resurgence of COVID seriously after cases more than tripled in the last month. 

A total of 94 local cases in June ballooned to 355 identified cases from July 1 to Aug. 9, said county Health Administrator Stacey White. The number of COVID tests coming back with positive cases is between 13-19 percent in any given week, White said, showing increased community spread of the disease. Ideally, the positivity rate for tests should be less than 5 percent.

About 30 deaths are currently attributed to confirmed COVID cases, according to a Missouri state database.

White said the spread of the COVID delta variant from southwest Missouri is likely to blame for the renewed outbreak, and that delta is far more transmissible and more frequently causes severe symptoms among younger people. Community members should strongly consider vaccinations and masking to help keep their families and their neighbors safe, White said.

“In Warren County, 99 percent of the current cases are unvaccinated individuals,” White said. “We are seeing a much younger population testing positive, and even those who have no underlying conditions are increasingly requiring hospitalization and have more symptoms than previous variants.”

White said the county health department is advising compliance with CDC guidance that people in high-transmission areas, including Warren County, should wear a mask in public indoor places, even if they are fully vaccinated. This is because the delta variant is up to twice as contagious as previous strains, to the point that it can sometimes spread from vaccinated people to the unvaccinated.

But getting vaccinated is still the strongest protection against the virus, White said, especially for those who are in contact with at-risk groups.

“Getting vaccinated will help protect our children who are too young to get vaccinated, and those with underlying conditions and who are immunocompromised ... and may experience poor outcomes if infected with COVID-19. Many places in our community offer walk-in COVID-19 vaccinations, including the Warren County Health Department, all of our pharmacies and Compass Health,” White said.

She added that even vaccinated people are now asked to get tested for COVID if they’ve been in contact with a positive case. Those who are contact traced from a positive case could still be asked to quarantine for 10 or more days, as well.

Local business owners who are wondering what precaution they or their employees should take to prevent the spread of COVID can find thorough guidance from the CDC online at cdc.gov/coronavirus.

For local schools, White said the health department is strongly recommending that all schools follow guidance being issued by the CDC and Missouri state agencies. The CDC currently recommends that all individuals wear masks in indoor spaces, particularly to protect children who are too young to receive the vaccine. However, the Missouri education and health departments are leaving the final decision on mask mandates up to each individual school district.