June 11th, 2022 by WCBC Radio

On Thursday, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announced COVIDReady Maryland, the state’s long-term preparedness plan to maximize the tools and treatments available in the fight against COVID-19. 

 

“Our state public health response has now fully transitioned from an emergency into an ongoing operation of state government,” said Governor Hogan. “As the next phase of our nation-leading response and recovery, we are announcing our COVIDReady Maryland plan to maximize all of the available tools and treatments for preventing severe illness and keeping people from being hospitalized, and to maintain an ongoing state of readiness over the long term so that we are prepared to respond to any emerging variants and any potential waves or surges.”

 

COVIDReady Maryland includes:

• Expanded “Test to Treat” provider infrastructure to make it easier for patients to get tested, evaluated, and treated for COVID in the same visit;
• Maximizing the use of therapeutic treatments to lower the risk of hospitalization for individuals with COVID;
• Booster shots for eligible populations;
• Enhanced awareness and outreach, including a new campaign featuring families from across Maryland who share why they got vaccinated;
• Maintaining readiness for new variants and waves of illness by continually monitoring key data metrics, maintaining substantial capacity for PCR and at-home testing, building up supplies of PPE, conducting contact tracing for high-priority cases; and bolstering hospital surge capacity.

 

Testing, vaccinations, and treatment for COVID-19 are available locally through primary care providers, pharmacies, and other healthcare facilities.  The Allegany County Health Department continues to offer COVID-19 vaccinations and testing for the public. 

Information on health department COVID testing and vaccination clinics can be found at health.maryland.gov/allegany.  More information on additional COVID resources can be found at covidLINK.maryland.gov.

• CDC COVID-19 Community Level:  Medium
• New COVID Cases This Week: 130 (cumulative total 17,646)
• Additional Deaths This Week: 0 (cumulative total 365)
• Cases Per 100,000 People: 26.37 (Maryland: 27.15)
• Positivity Rate: 9.4% (Maryland: 8.85%)