BOISE, Idaho — Idaho continues to see an increase in the number of COVID-19 related deaths.
Many deaths are occurring in the older population and those most at-risk. Local health officials have concerns that deaths will continue to spike, especially with students going back to school and flu season approaching.
Idaho had its first confirmed COVID-19 case in March. In its infancy, there were many days the state reported zero new deaths. The last time Idaho reported zero new deaths was on July 9.
Since then, the state has seen some of its highest COVID-19 death rates. The spike came on August 19, when the state reported a high of 13 new deaths.
The trend of increased deaths is concerning for health officials.
“Until we get those case counts down even more and get a handle on some of the outbreaks that are going on, we’re going to continue to see some of those deaths," said Brandon Atkins, program manager for Central District Health.
The majority of deaths have occurred in those aged 70 and older, which make up 83.4% of the state's total. Only 1 death has been reported so far under the age of 40.
“We’ve had many long-term care facilities that have ongoing outbreaks in them and a lot of deaths from people living in those long-term care facilities," Atkins said.
Once an outbreak hits a facility like that, it can be hard to manage.
Another reason why there are more deaths among the older population is that they are susceptible to the increased spread from younger populations, according to Atkins.
The 18 to 29 year old demographic make up the largest percentage of reported cases, with over 9,000 cases. Those 70 and older make up just over 2,600 cases.
Older populations often have additional health complications that prevent them from being able to recover as easily as the younger groups.
Health officials are also concerned that death rates may spike during the upcoming flue season.
“There’s no reason to believe a person couldn’t get a consecutive illness," Atkins said. "They could be getting a minor cold and then get hit with COVID and because their system is already overwhelmed, their immune system is not performing at top priority so it could result in some pretty staggering numbers.”
Atkins is hopeful that people will take the data seriously and continue to follow best practices such as wearing a mask and social distancing.
“People are still saying, ‘Our death rate is so slow, so few people have died from this.’ What’s so few?" he said. "I’d like people to think about this in the long run and think of how many people they’re willing to sacrifice to this before they say, ‘We need to do more as a community.’”
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