Columbia Memorial Health is once again operating with a modified visitation plan due to COVID-19. The policy change was first made public on November 1, in a post to the Columbia County Morning News Facebook page. According to that post, signs went up unexpectedly at 4 p.m., Fri., Oct 30, at the hospital. Staff said at the time said they had no idea how long the ban on visitors would continue since they were "just as shocked" as the patients, their friends and families. A post appeared at columbiamemorialhealth [dot] org sometime later: "Visitation at CMH will be temporarily suspended to all patient care unit[s]. Visitation for special considerations related to pediatric patients, women undergoing childbirth, patients for whom a support person has been determined to be essential to the care of the patient (medically necessary), and patients in imminent end-of-life and compassionate exceptions will remain unchanged....Patients undergoing surgical procedures may be accompanied to the hospital by one companion who may remain with the patient for the initial intake..." The River Newsroom is reporting the COVID-19 numbers continue to increase in Columbia and Greene counties as the holiday season approaches. Columbia County November 4, experienced its largest one-day spike since the pandemic began, with 22 new COVID-19 positive cases and six deaths from the coronavirus in less than three weeks. Currently, with 77 active infections, 368 county residents are under mandatory quarantine and 25 are hospitalized. The infection rate in Greene County skyrocketed over recent weeks due to an outbreak at Greene Correctional Facility in Coxsackie, bringing about the closure of Scott M. Ellis Elementary School in the Greenville school district.