Sheridan numbers begin to rise, Merk pill gets emergency use authorization

Sheridan County has had 4,519 lab confirmed cases, with nine new lab confirmed cases being reported in the last 24 hours. 

Sheridan County’s case count has experienced a recent uptick after low numbers were reported for the last few weeks. 

Two new probable cases have been added in the last 24 hours.

There are now 48 cases of COVID-19 currently active in Sheridan County, according to COVID-19 Public Information Officer Jennifer Graves. 

Currently, there are two patients hospitalized in Sheridan County battling the virus. The county has experienced the deaths of 61 residents to the virus.

The Associated Press reports that U.S. regulators have authorized a second pill against COVID-19, an antiviral drug from Merck that may help blunt the wave of infections driven by the omicron variant. The Food and Drug Administration granted the drug emergency use on Dec. 23, for adults with early onset COVID-19 who have higher risks of hospitalization. 

The authorization comes after the FDA approved a more effective pill from Pfizer. As a result, Merck’s drug might play a much smaller role than the pharmaceutical company may have hoped. Final study results show Merck’s drug is much less effective than originally predicted. And the drug will carry strict safety warnings due to the risk of birth defects when used during pregnancy.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention list Sheridan County’s level of community transmission as SUBSTANTIAL.  

More COVID-19 information is available at www.sheridancounty.com/covid-19/.