Increase in illnesses not stopping holiday plans for Kentuckians

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) - A rise in flu and COVID-19 cases does not seem to phase many Kentuckian’s plans for the upcoming holidays.

According to a new poll commissioned by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, more than 8 in 10 Kentuckians responded that it was “not too likely” or “not likely at all” that COVID-19 would keep them from holiday gatherings

From Dec. 5 to the 12, over 5000 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported here in the Commonwealth.

With the flu and COVID-19 cases on the rise, Ben Chandler, president, and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky said getting vaccinated should be a priority for many Kentuckians this winter.

“Getting this vaccine really is critical. I do not know any other way to say it, but the numbers show this,” said Chandler. “Far and away, the most people who are having serious complications from COVID-19 are the people who are not vaccinated.”

The poll also mentioned during this past summer, one in three Kentuckians said the pandemic was over in the state.

Fast forward to the fall, those numbers increased to more than four in 10 Kentuckians.

58 percent of people said the pandemic was over in their own lives in the fall of 2022.

“Kentuckians are, as a general matter, determined that this pandemic is over. They are going to behave like it for the most part during the holidays. We want to put a fine point on it. It really makes a great deal of difference if you get vaccinated,” said Chandler.

“If you get vaccinated and you do the other things to protect yourself like washing your hands, wearing masks, and making sure that you are not sick or symptomatic in any way when you do go to holiday functions. We need to use common sense about all of this and I think we will all be better off.”

If you are not vaccinated but would like to receive a vaccination before the holidays, click here to find the closest vaccination clinic near you.

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