LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Five people have been hospitalized due to an outbreak of a new COVID-19 variant at an eastern Kentucky nursing home.
Twenty-seven residents and 14 staff members at the facility tested positive for the variant, which health officials said is different from others that originated in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil.
Gov. Andy Beshear said it's "too early" to name the facility, and health officials have not yet determined the scope of the variant.
"We don't know if it's going to be widespread at all or if it's just there," Beshear said.
Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack said, "vaccination appears to have markedly reduced symptomatic disease" among those who have tested positive for the variant. Of the five residents who were hospitalized with the variant, only one had been vaccinated for COVID-19, according to Stack.
"Of the 41 infected persons, only 30% of the vaccinated individuals have been symptomatic," he said. "But a much lager 83% of the unvaccinated people have been symptomatic."
Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack speaks during a pandemic briefing at the state Capitol in Frankfort, Ky. (WDRB file photo)
In total, 85% of residents and 48% of staff members at the facility have been vaccinated, according to Stack, who also said "it appears" that an unvaccinated person brought the virus into the facility and genetic mapping is ongoing.
"We have to be very attentive about this, because the more opportunity we allow the virus to spread, the more people who get infected the more opportunity it has to mutate and eventually find combinations that help it to be more dangerous," Beshear said. "The good news is, the vaccines appear to be doing their job protecting people."
The governor said 11 Kentuckians recently returned from countries currently experiencing an Ebola outbreak: Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Those individuals have been contacted by their local health departments to assess exposure risk, according to Beshear, who said anyone at high risk will be asked to quarantine for 21 days.
"We are working with our hospitals to make sure they are ready to handle any suspect patients for 12 to 24 hours," Beshear said. "We have six Ebola assessment hospitals that are working with us to make sure they are prepared to handle potential patients and assessments for Ebola."
Kentucky State Penitentiary experiencing COVID-19 outbreak
A Kentucky state prison is in the midst of a COVID-19 outbreak as officials prepare to vaccinate older inmates statewide.
New cases in the state’s prison population have more than doubled since March 3, and most of those positive tests were at the Kentucky State Penitentiary, according to state officials.
On March 3, corrections officials reported 245 new cases, but by Tuesday that had grown to 628 new cases, Executive Cabinet Secretary J. Michael Brown said Tuesday at the governor’s pandemic briefing.
J. Michael Brown, secretary of Gov. Andy Beshear's executive cabinet. (WDRB file photo)
Brown said 555 of those cases were at the Kentucky State Penitentiary in western Kentucky. Eleven of the state’s 14 facilities have zero cases, he said.
State officials will soon begin vaccinating inmates 70 and older at all the state’s facilities, but timing will depend on incoming supplies of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, Brown said. He said they would go out to each of the state’s 14 facilities as supply becomes available.
Kentucky reports less than 900 new COVID-19 cases, 24 more deaths
Health officials on Tuesday reported 819 new COVID-19 cases in Kentucky alongside 24 more deaths in which the virus was a contributing factor.
Kentucky's positivity rate, which measures the proportion of COVID-19 tests returning positive, fell from 3.99% on Monday to 3.87% on Tuesday, according to a report from Kentucky Public Health.
The 24 additional virus-related deaths bring Kentucky to 5,029 reported since the start of the pandemic. Among the victims Beshear announced Tuesday was an 81-year-old man from Jefferson County.
According to the state's vaccination dashboard, 1,026,047 Kentuckians as of Tuesday had received at least the first dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Over the past week, 165,217 new residents were vaccinated, which breaks the previous record of 127,110 new people.
The dome of the Kentucky state Capitol is lit green to remember those who have died of COVID-19 and their families.
"Remember, by May 31, we believe every Kentucky adult who wants a vaccine will have gotten at least their first shot of hope," Beshear said. "We believe that we will beat the president’s goal to open appointments up to everybody 16 and up by May 1."
As of Tuesday, 459 Kentuckians were hospitalized with COVID-19, according to health officials, while 110 were being treated in intensive care units. More than 50 patients were on ventilators.
For most people, COVID-19 causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up within weeks. The vast majority of people recover. Of Kentucky's 417,412 confirmed cases reported since March, at least 48,802 have recovered, according to Kentucky Public Health.
But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal.
To find a COVID-19 testing location near you, click here. To find out if you're eligible for a vaccine and for more information on Kentucky's vaccination process, click here.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. Copyright 2021 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
