McKee: R.I. switching to ‘endemic strategy’ as COVID cases continue to drop

Since a peak in mid- January, hospitalizations in Rhode Island have dropped 78%.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) – In the continuous move to handle COVID-19 as an endemic instead of a pandemic, Governor McKee and other state health officials announcing Thursday morning a new way the state will measure COVID cases in the state.

in short, this CDC tiered system will focus on the more severe impacts of the virus, like hospitalizations, instead of just how many people have COVID.

State officials say they voted to switch to this new system as COVID cases in the state continue to drop. Right now, all five counties in the state are in the ‘low’ category.

Since a peak in mid- January, hospitalizations in Rhode Island have dropped 78%. McKee says this new threshold will also focus on how many people are in the hospital FOR COVID-19 versus how many people are in the hospital for something else but happen to also have COVID.

Earlier last week, the CDC released new guidance, as more than 90% of the U.S. population is in a location with a low or medium COVID-19 community level.

The Department of Health announced that state testing sites will now be for those that are symptomatic and at higher-risk.

RIDOH also recommended childcare center use test-to-stay when the state is at a ‘high’ COVID risk level. This means that children and staff who are close contacts to someone with COVID can stay if they are asymptomatic.

Additionally, medical emergency personnel will be leaving Rhode Island Hospitals on March 6.

The state’s mask mandate is set to expire at 5 p.m. in schools, says a spokesperson for the Governor’s office.

Individual districts will make their own decision from there on whether or not to keep masking required. The federal masking requirement on busses has been also lifted and will now be a local decision as well.

Gov. McKee says work is not done, and he plans to keep Rhode Islander’s up-to-date on the state’s COVID-19 response.