Nassau County Director of Florida Dept of Health briefs Nassau County Commissioners on Coronavirus and testing

By Cindy Jackson
Reporter
May 13, 2020

Each week, Nassau County’s Director for the Florida Department of Health, Dr. Eugenia Ngo-Seidel, provides a summary of agency activities to the Board of County Commissioners.

This week, on May 13, Dr. Seidel reported:

• Nassau County has had 61 individuals testing positive for Covid-19. Of those, all but two are residents.

• 2,047 tests have been performed County-wide with a 3% positivity rate overall

• 49 years of age is the median age of those individuals testing positive

• Nassau County has seen 13 hospitalizations and one death

Dr. Seidel also provided a breakdown of positive cases per zip code. As documented, they have been

21 cases in 32034
10 cases in 32097
11 cases in 32046
15 cases in 32011; and
<5 cases in 32009

Dr. Seidel explained this translates into 71 positive cases per 100,000 people which is well below the State average of 195 per 100,000.

However, Dr. Seidel noted the testing rate for Nassau County is 2,372 per 100,000 which is a tad below the State average of 2,768 per 100,000. Seidel went on to say they are “working very hard to improve that test rate.”

From this point forward, Seidel outlined the priorities for Nassau County Department of Health as being threefold.

Case identification and contact tracing is one such item. Said Seidel, “we process 100% of case contact investigations within 48 hours.”

Protecting the vulnerable in nursing homes and expanding mobile test locations rounds out that priority list. To that end, mobile test sites took place last week in Callahan and Hilliard and others are planned throughout the County. Seidel went on to say “those test sites that are sponsored are free of charge and you do not have to be symptomatic.”

Dr. Seidel ended her report by applauding the Commissioners and stating, “You’ve been very supportive and I continue to appreciate your leadership and your message to the community to proceed with the safe, smart step-by-step plan for Florida’s recovery.”