As COVID-19 metrics worsen, NCDHHS launches county alert system

SEEING RED: Gov. Roy Cooper unveiled a new county COVID-19 alert system designed to pinpoint emerging hotspots. Tiered rankings are determined by looking at case rates, the percent of positive tests and a county-level hospital impact score. Graphic courtesy of NCDHHS

With COVID-19 trends worsening across the state, Gov. Roy Cooper is worried. 

On Nov. 17, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reported 3,288 new cases of COVID-19, the second-highest number of cases reported in a single day. At the same time 1,502 hospitalized COVID-19 patients marked a new state record. The percent of positive tests is up to 8.1% — significantly above the 5% threshold state health officials say represents a controllable level of new infections.

It’s not a surge yet, but heightened viral spread in local communities and across the country should act as a “canary in a coal mine” for what North Carolina could soon be facing, Cooper warned at a Nov. 17 press conference. 

In response, state health officials unveiled a new county COVID-19 alert system designed to pinpoint hot spots and offer targeted recommendations to reduce the spread of COVID-19. All 100 counties are assigned a color-coded tier to indicate areas where residents need to ratchet up protective measures, announced Cooper. 

The system uses metrics informed by the White House Coronavirus Task Force to place counties into three categories, said Dr. Mandy Cohen, the state’s secretary of health and human services: Yellow, where significant community spread is occurring; orange, with substantial community spread; and red, where viral spread has become critical. 

MEETING THE MARK: In order to be classified as orange or red, North Carolina counties must reach the thresholds delineated in this table. Graphic courtesy of NCDHHS

Currently, every North Carolina county is classified at least as yellow due to widespread and sustained viral spread in the community, Cohen explained. The system uses per-capita case rates, the percent of positive tests and a composite hospital score that takes into account hospitalization rates, staffing shortages and emergency room visits to determine a county’s classification. 

The alert system also includes additional health recommendations for individuals, business owners and public officials residing in orange and red counties. Suggestions include teleworking when possible, imposing civil penalties to enforce statewide executive orders, instituting limits on in-person community and religious gatherings and opening additional COVID-19 testing sites. Compliance with the recommendations is voluntary, Cooper said, but failure to slow viral spread will result in additional restrictions at the state and county level, he warned. 

As of Nov. 17, 43 North Carolina counties are in the orange zone, and 10 counties are red. Buncombe, which reported 329 new COVID-19 cases over the last seven days, currently falls in the yellow zone; Cherokee, Jackson, Madison and Swain counties all fall in the orange zone. Counties will be evaluated and reclassified every four weeks. 

“If officials, businesses, community and faith leaders and people who live in these orange and red counties can work with us to take action to bring down their numbers, we can protect our state’s hospital system and save lives,” Cooper said. “This can prevent us from having to move backward.”

In other news

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Molly Horak
Molly Horak served as a reporter at Mountain Xpress. Follow me @molly_horak

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

One thought on “As COVID-19 metrics worsen, NCDHHS launches county alert system

  1. Charles

    “As COVID-19 metrics worsen, NCDHHS launches county alert system”. Great. Really comforting to know it will be updated monthly. I’d rather be reading “As COVID-19 metrics worsen, NC governor takes action to enforce stricter protocols”. It just seems like someone somewhere should be doing something?

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.