Is this South Dakota’s COVID peak? Monument Health weighs in
Monument Health’s Vice President of Medical Affairs said we shouldn’t look at any number of cases as one big peak but rather look at the ripples, saying only about 10% of South Dakota’s population has been infected so far.
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - Peak. A key term in the COVID pandemic. But when will South Dakota reach its peak in COVID cases? Or have we already?
Monument Health’s Vice President of Medical Affairs said we shouldn’t look at any number of cases as one big peak but rather look at the ripples, saying only about 10% of South Dakota’s population has been infected so far. But that means the ripples will continue.
He said the continuous rise and fall of high case numbers happens because people don’t follow safety measures such as wearing masks and staying away from crowds. He said South Dakota’s so-called peak began four months ago.
”We saw the change a couple of weeks after the Rally in the middle of August, August 24th roughly and then we saw a steady climb ever since,” said Shankar Kurra, the vice president of medical affairs. “That was the first inflection point we saw in the numbers in South Dakota and we have been on a high ever since.”
Kurra said this is South Dakota’s first surge of high COVID cases but a second wave can be stopped through safety measures and the upcoming vaccine.
Copyright 2020 KOTA. All rights reserved.
