COVID vaccine live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on May 9
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and COVID-19 vaccines in South Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases surpass 485,000
At least 485,387 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in South Carolina and 8,438 have died since March 2020, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 425 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, down from 451 reported the day before.
Nineteen coronavirus-related deaths were reported.
At least 344 people were reported hospitalized with COVID-19 on Saturday.
As of Saturday, 3.4% of COVID-19 tests were reported positive. Health officials say 5% or lower indicates a low risk of community spread.
More than 1.3 million South Carolina residents, or 33.8%, are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and more than 1.7 million, or 43%, have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
DHEC changes ‘probable cases’ calculation
The state health department has started counting confirmed and probable coronavirus cases together to clear up confusion about what a probable case is.
The agency has reported the cases separately since September.
A probable case is one in which a person has had a positive antigen test, also known as a rapid test, under standards from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“While the wording for these cases that the CDC uses is ‘probable,’ these are a case of COVID-19, and the isolation and quarantine recommendations and all other health actions are the same,” DHEC said. “A confirmed case and a probable case are treated no differently.”
DHEC will also be reporting probable and confirmed deaths together.
No ‘magic number’ for herd immunity: Fauci
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, told McClatchy News in an interview that there’s no “magic number” for reaching coronavirus herd immunity in South Carolina.
Instead, he said we should be focused on getting as many people vaccinated as possible.
Dr. Cameron Webb, senior policy adviser for COVID-19 equity at the White House, agreed with Fauci, saying it’s important not to attach expectations to specific figures or timelines.
“We’re not going to have a moment where we say, ‘we’ve crossed this number, and therefore you can get back to exactly how things were at some point in 2019’,” Webb said. “We’re going to go through this process of making our way back toward some version of normalcy, and I think that that’s going to be what people should expect.”
