SUMTER, S.C. — Across the Midlands, doctors are seeing more people getting tested, as COVID-19 cases rise and hospitals begin to fill.
In Sumter, Tandem Health's Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Justice said they've seen twice as many positive cases.
The rise in community spread is a trend the State Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) said is being seen in much of the state.
“Sumter County is seeing a dramatic increase in cases. Over the course of the early spring and summer, we were downgraded to a moderate risk, even if one was unvaccinated," Dr. Justice said. "However, over the past two weeks, we’ve been upgraded to an extremely high risk, especially if one is unvaccinated in our community.”
Dr. Justice said the line of people seeking testing at their facility has grown over the last few weeks.
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“Our numbers over the tail weeks of July were up over 150 percent over the previous period of about a month or so," Dr. Justice said. "We have seen a significant increase in our rate of positivity. I would say that it’s on the order of about twice as many positive cases the last couple of weeks as we’ve seen previously.”
He says the amount of people seeking vaccines at their facility has remained about the same, something he's hoping to see change.
"If you’re a member of our community and you’re unvaccinated and you’re kind of on the fence, please consider getting the vaccine ... either through us at Tandem; we’d love to give you a vaccine," Dr. Justice said. "If not, there are plenty of other places that you can get one of them. This is the best defense that we have.”