WASHINGTON CO. HEALTH AUTHORITY ADDRESSES TESTING, MASKS, COVID-19 CASES IN COMMUNITY

  

Washington County’s health authority says the COVID-19 situation in the county is by no means over.

Dr. William Loesch said in a video update to the community this (Friday) morning that he is still seeing cases of community spread, particularly over the past two weeks.  He said the virus has not gone away, and he does not expect it to any time soon.

Addressing the cases at the Brenham Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Loesch said the facility is doing better and is now stable, although he does still expect a few more COVID-19 patient deaths there.  He also said some group homes have gotten hit by the coronavirus, and there are concerns that another, unnamed local nursing home may have a case, but assured that local and state authorities are actively investigating.

Dr. Loesch then turned to the topic of masks, which he said has seen a lot of misinformation thrown around online.

 

Dr. Loesch said masks do not significantly reduce a person’s chance of contracting the virus, but they do greatly reduce the chance of transmission to another person.  He added that people need to be very mindful of what they believe on social media, particularly when it comes to myths about masks or cures for the virus.  He said there is currently no cure for COVID-19, so the right thing to do right now is to be safe.

Dr. Loesch also discussed COVID-19 testing and its reliability, which he said has improved, but there are still flaws with the current methods.

 

Dr. Loesch said, with nasal swab testing, if there is not enough of a sample taken from a patient, there may not be enough virus particles to test, which could lead to an inaccurate result.  However, he said that method has been the most reliable to this point, and he is not yet sold on the accuracy of antibody testing.  He said he has had many people come in and tell him they have had the virus as far back as January or even November, but of all the people that received antibody testing, only one has tested positive.  He acknowledged that the virus may indeed have been present, but not prevalent, in the community in late January or early February.

Dr. Loesch then encouraged the community to hang in there, saying while life may not return to normal as soon as many would like, the end of this is coming.

 

Dr. Loesch closed with a plea to the public to minimize trips out and about, wear masks, wash their hands, and continue social distancing.