McLeod Health Clarendon, state health officials warn against big gatherings

Between the colder weather and the flu season, this holiday season is expected to be like no other.

With the coronavirus still surging out of control, public health officials are warning ahead of the holidays that residents need to take serious provisions to not infect themselves and their family. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday advised people not to travel for Thanksgiving and not to spend the holiday with people from outside their household. With that warning, local health officials are also encouraging the same message in Sumter, Clarendon and Lee counties.

They say the tri-county could see an unprecedented number of outbreaks since the summer if people forgo safety guidelines.

"We have to be really smart about this and make sure we do everything we can to mitigate the spread of the virus," said Dr. Catherine Rabon, chief medical officer at McLeod Health Clarendon.

Over in Clarendon County, the county had 1,268 confirmed cases and 67 deaths as of Thursday, according to South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. The county has consistently had among the highest hospitalization rates in South Carolina, sitting at 13% hospitalized at the time of illness and 164 reported hospitalizations. Sumter's highest rate of daily cases was at the end of July and has been fluctuating but overall increasing this fall. As of Thursday, Sumter County had 3,889 confirmed coronavirus cases and 93 deaths.

The start of the holidays and colder weather will increase how often people gather indoors and potentially further increase the spread of the coronavirus, experts say.

Knowing that many want to gather for the holidays, Dr. Rabon advises people to limit huge family gatherings.

"It's not that we're not wanting to gather; it's that we're not wanting to spread a potential deadly virus," she said.

Vaccine testing

As coronavirus cases keep increasing and state health officials warn that South Carolina could be in the midst of a "fall surge," there seems to be no plans from Gov. Henry McMaster to enact any statewide restrictions, his office confirmed. With cases surging, many were hoping that a vaccine would have been ready before the holidays, but state epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said testing is still underway from Pfizer and Moderna, which are seeing progress.

"These vaccines have gone through the testing and the studies that are no different than any other vaccines," Dr. Bell said.

In a 30-minute telebriefing on Wednesday, officials told reporters it would take at least two weeks for the approval that Pfizer is seeking from the FDA to be granted, if not longer. Once approved, Dr. Stephen White, DHEC's immunization director, said he doesn't know how many doses the Palmetto State will receive or when they'd arrive.

However, Bell said when it is ready, "cost will not be a barrier" because the federal government is working toward making the vaccine available at no charge. Once it becomes available, it will first be administered to health care workers then the general population as supply increases.

With Thanksgiving less than a week away and Christmas close behind, Dr. Rabon advises everyone to continue washing their hands, avoid large family gatherings, wear face masks and, most importantly, watch out for cross contamination of foods.

"We need to be cognizant of the fact that we are still in the midst of a pandemic," she said.