Chain Stores Most COVID-19 Outbreaks Colorado Update westword.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from westword.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
At this point in the COVID-19 pandemic, with vaccination rates going up and inoculations now available to anyone over fifteen, officials had hoped that case counts would be in serious decline. But no: This week s roundup of data from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment shows infections and hospitalizations continuing to rise and the number of newly identified outbreaks has skyrocketed.
The 170 new outbreak sites in the state listed on the CDPHE s just-released April 28 survey represents a 13.166 percent increase in just seven days and the spike is paced by an explosion of outbreaks at schools in which the overwhelming majority of positive tests involve students. The 52 outbreaks at K-12 facilities account for well over a quarter of the new outbreaks.
At a March 16 press conference, Governor Jared Polis revealed that COVID-19 cases in Colorado have plateaued at a higher level than officials would prefer, hospitalizations from the novel coronavirus are inching up again, and variants are increasing at a worrisome clip. As a result, a return to what was considered normal prior to the pandemic may be further off than he had predicted just a week earlier.
Outbreaks are growing, too, with 91 new sites added to the state s list on March 10. As has been the case since the pandemic started a year ago, many of those under active investigation are associated with national chains doing business in Colorado. Some of the outbreaks on the most recent list are relatively fresh, while others have been going on for months, including an outbreak at a metro Home Depot that is connected to more than 100 staff cases. And it s hardly the only link in a chain with an infection total close to triple digits.
Of the national chains with the most outbreaks of COVID-19 in Colorado, some seem to be doing a better job of keeping the virus at bay. But the number of outbreaks at others continues to grow, and so does the size of the outbreaks.
Just two chain outbreaks have spawned more than 100 cases each, while many others have infected dozens of staffers.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment considers an entity an outbreak after two or more COVID-19 cases among residents, staffers or other people connected to a specific location are confirmed within a fourteen-day period, or two or more cases of respiratory illness with an onset of symptoms within a fourteen-day period are paired with at least one additional COVID-19 diagnosis. The vast majority of businesses and facilities identified as outbreaks remain open while working with the department to monitor symptoms and prevent future infections.
Colorado has a new leader in the contest for the state s most ignominious honor: the national chain with the most outbreaks of COVID-19. Kroger, the grocery giant whose affiliates here operate under the King Soopers and City Market nameplates, has been surpassed by Walmart, with a stunning eleven new Colorado outbreaks in a little over a month.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment considers an entity an outbreak after two or more COVID-19 cases among residents, staffers or other people connected to a specific location are confirmed within a fourteen-day period, or two or more cases of respiratory illness with an onset of symptoms within a fourteen-day period are paired with at least one additional COVID-19 diagnosis. The vast majority of businesses and facilities identified as outbreaks remain open, while working with the department to monitor symptoms and prevent future infections.