Coronavirus Latest: Cases Rise Among Young Adults In Maryland
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Maryland health officials are concerned about the growing increase in coronavirus cases among young adults.
Those under age 35 have a positivity rate that is more than 80 percent higher than people older than 35. Marylanders in their 20s and 30s now make up the majority of new cases in the state.
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"We are also seeing there's an increase in cases among Hispanics, and there's some overlap there as well," said Anne Arundel County Health Officer Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman. "Some of it has to do with leisure activities, bars, restaurants, outdoor—but some of it also has to do with work."
Anne Arundel County has one of Maryland's strictest mask policies—requiring them even in outdoor public spaces when there are crowds and people are unable to social distance. Dr. Kalyanaraman said they have not yet issued any citations and stressed that they simply want people to wear masks.
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Gov. Hogan urged local leaders to enforce mask wearing in bars and restaurants and said young adults should stay out of crowded bars and house parities.
But he stopped short of rolling back their reopening.
"If this gets out of control, if people continue not to follow the rules, we will have to take another look," the governor said this week.
In neighboring Pennsylvania, Governor Tom Wolf did roll back re-openings. This week, he announced bars must be closed unless they also offer dine-in meals, and bars and restaurants will be limited to 25 percent capacity.
"Unfortunately, this virus does not respect state boundaries," Gov. Wolf said.
In Baltimore's Canton neighborhood, several bars and restaurants have closed because of staff who tested positive. Some of them have since reopened.
In Ocean City, Maryland at least nine restaurants and bars have had to close due to positive cases among employees. That list includes the mainstay Phillips Crab House.
"As we see reopening and more activity in bars and restaurants and the decrease in social distancing, we are worried this is a real opportunity to see an increase in overall cases in the state," said Dr. Clifford Mitchell with the Maryland Department of Health.
On Thursday, Maryland reported six more deaths but 11 fewer overall hospitalizations than the day before.
The state reported 648 new cases. For the prior two days, the number of newly-reported cases was more than 700.
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For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.