Melissa Patrick

Kentucky Health News

Even as the share of Kentuckians testing positive for the coronavirus continues to rise, about a third of the state’s adults believe the pandemic is over, and more than half believe it is over as it pertains to their own lives, according to a Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky poll taken June 4 through July 13.

What this means is that Kentuckians are back to living their normal everyday lives, despite the ongoing pandemic, foundation president and CEO Ben Chandler said at a news conference Tuesday.

One dose provides very little protection, experts say.

The poll found that 65.4% of Kentucky adults said they believed the pandemic was not yet over in Kentucky, 31.7 % said it was over and 3% said they didn’t know. But when asked if the pandemic was over as it pertains to their own lives, 53.3% said it was, 44.7% said it was not, and 2% said they didn’t know.

In both cases, the share who said the pandemic was over was higher among men and younger age groups.

The state’s latest weekly report showed a 6.8% increase in coronavirus cases last week, with 2,236 new cases per day. The positive-test rate, which does not include home tests, rose to 18.41%; hospitalizations increased; and 67 more deaths were attributed to the virus, the largest weekly total since 79 were reported in mid-May.