Over the past 2 weeks, 40% of all COVID cases in Calvert have occurred in 15-19 year olds. This narrow age range has accounted for almost half of all our cases! As noted in our previous post, a Graduation/“COVID-19” party in Drum Point on 7/25 served as the cauldron for many of these infections. At present, the Health Department knows of 15 attendees of that party who have tested positive. In addition, 3 parents, 1 grandparent, 1 sibling, and 4 co-workers are known to have become ill as a result of secondary infections. At least 2 adults have been hospitalized, one of whom is in the ICU.
It's likely that other 15-19 year olds who have tested positive since late July attended the same party or other similar parties. Close to a dozen teens with positive test at the end of July and early August have not answered calls from COVID contact tracers. In these cases, we only have the teens' cell numbers- no home phone numbers- so there’s no way for us to confirm whether they were in attendance. It’s also a certainty that others at the party became infected but did not get tested and/or remained asymptomatic. In either case, these people could have infected family members or other close contacts. As a result, the total number of Calvert infections that were spawned as a result of transmission at this party will never be fully known.
This should be a wake-up call to everyone. Every day, we’re all playing a game of chess. Each move we make today has repercussions down the board. The COVID risks we expose ourselves to, whether it’s at parties or any setting with large numbers of people, also leave those in our daily lives at potential risk for weeks to come.
Finally, healthcare providers should educate adults, especially those with underlying health conditions, that they need to be mindful of potential transmission from their children/grandchildren. They should include, "Do you have a 15-19 year old in your household?" to their clinical screening questions until we see numbers decline.
