Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich announced in a statement Saturday that he has tested positive for COVID-19.
In the statement, Elrich said his symptoms were mild and he was “just feeling tired. I am grateful to be vaccinated and boosted.”
Elrich said he would be isolating and working from home.
“The dangers of the omicron variant are real, and I encourage everybody to take necessary steps to stay safe,” Elrich said. “Our community’s high vaccination rate is critical to ensuring our ability to make it through this.”
Like much of the D.C. region, Montgomery County has seen a recent surge of COVID-19 cases, though county officials said Wednesday that hospitals have not been overwhelmed.
Around 72% of the county’s total population is fully-vaccinated, and 80% have received at least one dose.
Elrich reported Wednesday that the county’s case rate is eight times higher — 649 cases per 100,000 residents — than it was at the beginning of the month. He said that the numbers of this surge are reminiscent of the ones experienced during winter last year, before the first COVID-19 vaccines were widely available.
