COLORADO, USA — Health officials with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) said there are signs the omicron surge is beginning to decline during an update to the state's response to COVID-19 on Thursday, but case rates and hospitalizations remain high.
State Epidemiologist Dr. Rachel Herlihy said Colorado and the U.S. are both experiencing a similar rapid decline in case rates, and the state's seven-day average positivity rate has decreased from around 30% to a still high 26%.
Hospitalizations have decreased slightly to 1,641 as of Thursday, 30 less than the previous day, and Herlihy reminded that hospitalization decreases typically lag behind drops in case and percent positivity rates.
COVID Incident Commander Scott Bookman echoed the cautious optimism as the average number of available hospital beds continues to creep upwards. As of Thursday there are currently 437 beds available.
Herlihy said the timing is right for Colorado's surge to decline compared to the trajectory of other locations, and is looking for a prolonged drop in hospitalizations in the coming days and weeks as confirmation.
Data show unvaccinated individuals are 46 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID than individuals who have received a booster dose, and vaccinated but unboosted individuals are seven times more likely, according to Herlihy.
RELATED: Some libraries to begin handing out KN95 masks on Thursday
Herlihy said she is cautiously optimistic the end of the omicron surge could lead to the end of the pandemic, but due to the highly unpredictable nature of COVID she said that scenario is far from certain.
Bookman said that the state received 82,500 KN95 masks and 226,000 surgical mask on Tuesday as part of a new program to distribute them to Coloradans for free. In addition, the state is scheduled to receive 225,0000 more KN95 masks and 123,000 surgical masks by tomorrow.
There are 272 locations currently opted in to distribute the masks; 178 libraries, 63 fire departments and 31 rec centers.
>> Video below: CDPHE gives update on COVID in Colorado
As of Wednesday, Jan. 19, the state's reported positive cases were 8,025, which was a drop of more than 2,100 from the previous day. The state's positivity rate also dropped nearly 2%, but still hovers at over 26%.
Since the pandemic began, Colorado has recorded 10,726 COVID-related deaths, as of Jan. 19.
>> Video below: What about Omicron moves us closer to endemic?
Vaccines
Everyone in Colorado who is 5 years old or older is now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
Of those who are currently eligible, 79.06% have received at least one dose of the vaccine and 71% are fully vaccinated, according to CDPHE data.
An estimated 429,801 Coloradans are younger than 5 and are currently not eligible to receive a vaccine.
Masks
Gov. Jared Polis' office announced that KN95 and surgical-grade masks became available for free at various locations across the state, but some of the locations said they don't have masks to give out.
Many libraries began handing out those masks on Thursday. Information about where to find them can be found here.
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