COVID-19 Positivity Rate at Record High in Southern Idaho

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KLIX)-Southern Idaho public health officials say the positivity rate for COVID-19 infections has hit record levels not measured before since the pandemic began in 2020. The South Central Public Health District (SCPHD) says the latest surge in case numbers is growing faster compared to the last two in 2020 and 2021. The current positivity rate (published Jan. 27) is at 37 percent, according to SCPHD that is out of every 100 people tested for COVID-19 37 of them come back positive. According to the number from the last surge in the fall of 2021 the positivity rate was at 18 percent. “More than a third of our neighbors and family members testing for COVID-19 are actually sick with the disease. That’s incredibly alarming,” said Logan Hudson, SCPHD Division Administrator in a statement. “This disease is spreading at a rate faster than we’ve ever seen before.” SCPHD also notes that more people have gotten sick faster than before as it has only taken about five weeks for local cases to hit 1,000 in a week. Statewide the increase has resulted in a backlog of 42,000 positive lab results for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. SCPHD says it is getting an average of 150 cases reported a day and has shifted the focus of case investigations because it doesn't have enough staff to cover it all. Investigators will focus on high-risk residents that may live in dorms, long-term care facilities, and jails. Also, it will investigate cases involving the hospitalized, frontline workers, and those in healthcare. Read more from SCPHD.