Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on Dec. 21
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in South Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases surpass 255,000
At least 255,210 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in South Carolina and 4,587 have died, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control on Monday reported 2,121 new COVID-19 cases, down from 2,583 reported the day before.
Twenty-one additional deaths were reported Monday.
As of Monday, 1,523 people in South Carolina were hospitalized with the coronavirus.
The percentage of positive tests was 21.7% on Monday, down from 22.4% the day before. Health officials have said the number should be closer to 5% to slow the spread of the virus.
Lexington mask mandate back in effect
Lexington Town Council voted 5-2 in favor of implementing a mask mandate, requiring masks to be worn in public, The State reported.
The new mandate will be in effect through May 1. The decision comes nearly two months after Lexington allowed the ordinance to expire.
“Every city around us has a mask ordinance,” said Mayor Steve MacDougall. “Our health officials are asking for a mask ordinance, our business professionals are asking for a mask ordinance, our schools are asking for a mask ordinance, and that’s what we’re doing.”
Some SC congressmen have been vaccinated, others say they’re waiting
Some South Carolina congressmen were among the first Americans to get a COVID-19 vaccine, but others are saying they will wait until it is available to the general public before they get inoculated.
U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham, 65, Tim Scott, 55, and U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, 80, announced on Twitter that they’ve been vaccinated.
“Thank God for nurses who help people in need and know how to use a needle. Thank God for those who produced these vaccines,” Graham tweeted. “If enough of us take it, we will get back to normal lives. Help is on the way.”
Doses of coronavirus vaccines are currently in short supply, and likely won’t be available to the public at large for several months.
Front line health care workers are the primary group targeted to receive the early doses available now.
U.S. Rep.-elect Nancy Mace, who unseated U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham in November, said she would wait for her “turn in line.”
“Congress shouldn’t be putting themselves first in line for the COVID-19 vaccination when the average American can’t get it,” Mace tweeted. “For as long as the vaccines are limited, we should prioritize healthcare and frontline workers, and every person at greater risk, especially the elderly.”
Mace already contracted the coronavirus in June. According to studies, antibodies produced while the body fights off the infection may also provide protection against COVID-19 in the future.
U.S. Rep. Tom Rice’s office said he will wait to get inoculated as well.
“Since he had COVID-19 previously and has antibodies, he wants to ensure that the elderly and frontline workers receive the vaccine first,” spokesperson Cally Perkins said.
Masks, tests and more: How lawmakers will return to state house
The South Carolina senate will be masked up and socially distanced when its 46 members return to the state house in January, The State reported.
No such agreement has been made in the house, though House Speaker Jay Lucas’ office has repeatedly asked the 124-member body to wear masks while inside the chamber. A handful of representatives have openly defied those requests.
Many in the legislature agree meeting face-to-face is imperative, but there is concern too, about what might happen if a large COVID-19 outbreak occurs in the state house -- particularly because many senators and representatives are of an age considered at higher risk of developing complications due to coronavirus.
Touchless thermometers will also be installed at the entrances to the Senate’s Gressette office building, and COVID-19 testing will be available to all senators and staff.
“The protocols require the participation and cooperation of everyone,” Senate President Harvey Peeler wrote in a memo. “The Clerk and Sergeant-At-Arms are responsible for supporting and implementing this plan in order to keep everyone safe. That being said, it is your responsibility to make sure you follow the protocols and self-monitor for signs and symptoms of COVID-19.”
Upstate hospitals nearing capacity
Leaders of five Upstate health centers held a press conference Monday, sounding the alarm as COVID-19 cases rise and their hospitals’ ICUs are stretched thin, The State reported.
Hospitalizations have doubled in South Carolina since before Thanksgiving, and the increase is especially great in the Upstate region.
Health officials said the growing hospitalizations are due in large part to a lack of social distancing and mask use among some of the population.
“Each of us has a responsibility to do our part to lower the spread of this disease,” Anmed Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Robert Mock said, calling the coronavirus pandemic “the greatest public health crisis of our lifetime.”
School district to reduce in-person classes
Lexington One school district will reduce in-person classes in January amid concerns that student coronavirus cases could more than quadruple again, The State reported Saturday.
The number of students in the district with the virus quadrupled in the weeks after Thanksgiving break, according to a letter from Superintendent Gregory Little sent to parents Friday afternoon. Student quarantines tripled and staff quarantines and positive cases more than doubled.
The district expects “the magnitude of Winter Break to be even greater,” the letter says.
An outline for how classes will be held following the break can be found here.
Vaccines at long-term care facilities
Residents and staff at South Carolina’s long-term care facilities could start receiving COVID-19 vaccine doses by the last week of December.
Stephen White, DHEC’s immunization chief, told The State that residents should receive their shots in the next three to six weeks. They have been prioritized for vaccination due to their vulnerability to the coronavirus.
Pharmacy teams from CVS and Walgreens will coordinate in the coming weeks to administer shots at the state’s nursing homes and assisted living facilities as part of a federal program overseen by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
State health officials have so far designated about 104,000 doses of Moderna’s vaccine for long-term care facilities.
The Moderna vaccine received emergency use authorization Friday and could make it to South Carolina by early this week. Like the Pfizer vaccine, it requires two doses.
Unemployment rate up for first time in months
South Carolina’s unemployment rate rose slightly in November after months of decreasing, according to the Department of Employment and Workforce.
A total of 102,186 people were estimated to be out of work and looking for a job in November, for an unemployment rate of 4.4%, up from October’s rate of 4.2%.
The rate was still significantly short of April’s peak 12.8% unemployment rate.
Unemployment tends to increase in colder months as outdoor jobs are less feasible and as tourism in South Carolina slows. The state went in the opposite direction as the country overall, which saw a decrease from a 6.9% unemployment rate in October to 6.7% in November.
This story was originally published December 21, 2020 at 6:56 AM.
