22 Kaua‘i Residents Diagnosed With COVID-19

The Hawai‘i State Department of Health Kaua‘i District Health Office reported 22 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, July 13.

Today’s cases are all adult residents. The source of infection for seven of them is travel-related: six mainland and one interisland. The remaining 15 are considered community-acquired. Of the 15 community-acquired infections, 12 are in close contacts of previously announced cases, and three have no known source of infection. The Department of Health has identified two new clusters of infection: one in a place of worship and one in a congregate living setting.

All active cases are in isolation, and close contacts are being identified, offered testing, and directed to quarantine. Investigations are ongoing.

“The majority of Kaua‘i’s cases have been in unvaccinated individuals, and we are seeing a significant spike in cases islandwide. We are also finding that many of these cases have been sick for several days before getting tested and continued to go to work and attend church services. This is causing disease to spread widely in our community,” said Dr. Janet Berreman, Kaua‘i District Health Officer. “Please – if you are sick, isolate yourself immediately and arrange to be tested for COVID-19.”

The Kaua‘i District Health Office recently received results from the State Laboratory confirm that the rise in cases is due to the Delta variant.

“The DOH variant report released yesterday confirms that we are seeing a rise in cases caused by the Delta variant both statewide and on Kaua‘i. It spreads rapidly, and our best protection is vaccination — the time to be vaccinated is now,” said Dr. Berreman. “The longer we wait, the more time the virus has to spread. Particularly, we want to make sure that young people are getting vaccinated as this variant also impacts young people in a way that previous variants have not.”

Today’s cases bring the number of active cases to 51, with two hospitalized, and 491 cumulative cases. Kaua‘i’s cumulative case count includes 447 confirmed locally, three probable, and 41 positive cases diagnosed elsewhere, as they received their pre-travel test results after arriving on island.

If you have symptoms or are feeling sick, you should isolate yourself immediately, stay away from household members, and not go out – including to work or school – unless you are seeking testing or getting health care. Those who have been vaccinated should still be tested if they believe they may have been exposed or if they feel sick.

Residents aged 18 and older are eligible for any vaccine available at pharmacy, hospital, and clinic locations. The Pfizer vaccine has been authorized for use in those 12 years of age and older, and are available at hospitals and pharmacies islandwide.

Vaccination is free and widely available on the island, including on weekends and evenings and pop-up vaccination opportunities at community sites. Many vaccination sites accept walk-ins. For details, visit www.kauai.gov/vaccine. Those who plan to travel can protect themselves and their families by being fully vaccinated before traveling.

Free testing is available at the Convention Hall, weekdays, from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on a first-come, first-served basis. Testing is also available through your primary care physician, a hospital, or an urgent care clinic. Contact those providers directly for more information.

For more details, visit https://www.kauai.gov/covidtest. For more information on the county’s COVID-19 response, visit www.kauai.gov/COVID-19.