More Lives Lost To Covid-19 In Lancaster County

Lincoln, NE (January 28, 2021) The Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department (LLCHD) today announced that four more residents have died from COVID-19. The deaths were a man in his 60s who died at home, and three people in their 70s – a man and woman who were hospitalized and a man in a long-term care facility.

The number of new lab-confirmed cases is not available.

The State of Nebraska has now launched the website that will allow residents to sign up for corona virus vaccine. In Lincoln and Omaha, local sites are already operating. Anyone who has signed up on their local site need not re-register on the State’s site. The state’s version will allow people living in the other 91 counties to sign up. Vaccine is being distributed around the state according to each county’s population of age and risk groups.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION SOURCES:

Visit lincoln.ne.gov/COVID19dashboard to access a dashboard that summarizes Lancaster County COVID-19 data. LLCHD also released the following information today:

Recoveries: not available

Weekly positivity rate:

January 17 through 23: 29.4 percent
January 24 through 28: not available

Hospitalizations for COVID-19 positive patients: 72 with 51 from Lancaster County (none on ventilators) and 21 from other communities (one on a ventilator).

Vaccine registrations: nearly 64,000

An online COVID-19 vaccine registration form for Lancaster County residents is now available at COVID19.lincoln.ne.gov. Those who do not have online access or who need assistance may call LLCHD’s COVID-19 hotline at 402-441-8006 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays to register.

The vaccine is not yet available for the general public. As vaccine doses become available, those who are registered will be given an appointment to be vaccinated. Appointments for vaccinations are dependent on vaccine supply and are not related to the order in which people register. The registration is open to all County residents, but those who are in Phase1B – those age 65 and older and those with underlying medical conditions – are encouraged to register.

The COVID-19 Risk Dial is at elevated orange, indicating a high risk of the virus spreading. Residents are advised to follow these recommendations to protect themselves and others:

Wear a face mask and stay at least six feet away when interacting with anyone from anyone outside of your household.
Work from home if possible.
Individual outdoor activities are preferred.
Small gatherings and events only with modifications (i.e. physical distancing, face masks, capacity limits, etc.).
Avoid large gatherings.
Visit RecoverLNK.com for information on how local businesses are taking precautions to protect employees and customers.
Follow travel guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control at cdc.gov.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, shortness of breath, repeated shaking with chills, repeated muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell. If you have symptoms, please get tested. Testing is now open to all Lancaster County residents by appointment only.

The testing process begins with a free online risk assessment available at BryanHealth.com, CHIHealth.com or TestNebraska.com. Drive through test sites include:

Bryan Health: Former Graham Tire Store, northeast corner of 19th and “O” streets. Tests are conducted from 8:45 to 11:15 a.m. Monday and 8:45 to 11:45 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
CHI Health St. Elizabeth: Autumn Ridge Family Medicine, 5000 North 26th St. and Southwest Family Health, 1240 Aries Drive. Call either site to schedule an appointment: Autumn Ridge, 402-435-5300 and South West Family, 402-420-1300.
Test Nebraska: Gateway Mall, 6100 “O” St., north parking lot of the former Sears store. Tests are conducted from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information, call 402-207-9377.

For more information, visit COVID19.lincoln.ne.gov or call the Health Department hotline at 402-441-8006.