Miami-Dade passes COVID-19 milestone 2,000 deaths as Florida reports 6,362 new cases
Miami-Dade, the epicenter of COVID-19 cases and number of deaths in the state, passed another milestone Saturday as Florida’s Department of Health reported another 48 deaths in the county. This brings the death toll in Miami-Dade over the 2,000 mark to 2,047.
Florida also confirmed 6,362 additional cases of COVID-19, pushing the state’s known total to 569,637. An additional 204 Florida resident deaths were also announced, bring the statewide resident death toll to 9,345.
The total confirmed cases are higher than Friday’s 6,178 but the deaths were fewer by 24.
No new non-resident deaths were announced Saturday, leaving that death toll at 135.
Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in South Florida
Note: The Florida Department of Health says that each county’s percent positivity for new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) does not include retests (people who have tested positive once and are being tested for a second time.)
▪ Miami-Dade County reported 1,745 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19, an increase of 62 compared to Friday, and 48 new deaths, three more than Friday, according to Florida’s Department of Health. The county now has 144,407 confirmed cases and 2,047 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 10.66%
▪ Broward County reported 642 additional confirmed cases of the disease, six more than Friday, and 26 new deaths, five fewer than Friday. The county now has a known total of 66,011 cases and 940 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 7.17%
▪ Palm Beach County saw 327 additional confirmed cases, 40 fewer than Friday, and 13 new deaths, one more than Friday. The county now has 38,902 confirmed cases and 989 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 6.16%
▪ Monroe County reported 19 additional cases of the disease, seven fewer than Friday, and no new deaths, according to the health department. The Florida Keys now have 1,622 confirmed cases and 13 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 10.59%
Here’s a breakdown on what you need to know:
COVID-19 hospitalizations in Florida
One of the tools that officials rely on to determine whether the coronavirus situation is improving in the state is hospitalization data. Unlike testing, which might be limited or take days to report results, hospitalizations can help give officials a real-time snapshot of how many people are severely ill with COVID-19.
The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration reports the number of patients hospitalized statewide with a “primary diagnosis of COVID.” The data, which is updated at least every hour, does not distinguish between the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital intensive care units and those in acute-care beds, which require less attention from nurses.
Previously, the state was only providing the total number of hospitalizations in its statewide and county-level data. Miami-Dade was an exception, with hospitals self-reporting a number of key metrics, including hospitalizations, to the county, which has made this data public for several months.
As of 11:30 a.m. Saturday, there were 5,709 COVID-19 patients admitted into hospitals throughout the state, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration dashboard. That number is 184 fewer than Friday afternoon.
Of those, 1,139 were in Miami-Dade, 64 fewer than Friday afternoon. There were 725 in Broward, 45 fewer than Friday. There were 360 in Palm Beach County, three fewer than Friday. And, 10 in Monroe county, two more than Friday, according to the agency.
Florida’s current hospitalization data does not always match the hospitalization data reported in Miami-Dade’s “New Normal” dashboard. Officials say this could be for a number of reasons including the frequency of daily updates.
On Saturday, Miami-Dade hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications decreased from 1,402 to 1,314, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard. According to Saturday’s data, 175 people were discharged and 72 people were admitted.
The state has had a total of 33,661 Florida residents hospitalized for COVID-19-related complications, according to Florida’s COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard. That number is 506 greater than Friday’s figure.
COVID-19 testing in Florida
Testing in Florida has seen steady growth since the COVID-19 crisis began.
Testing, like hospitalizations, helps officials determine the virus’ progress and plays a role in deciding whether it is safe to lift stay-at-home orders and loosen restrictions.
Epidemiologists then use the testing data to create a positive rate. The rate helps them determine if a rise in cases is because of an increase in testing, or if it means there’s increased transmission of the virus in the community.
On Saturday, Florida’s Department of Health reported the results of 83,439 people tested on Friday. The positive rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) was 7.67%.
To date, 4,209,375 people have been tested in Florida — an increase of 41,272 compared to Friday. Of the total tested, 569,637 (13.53%) have tested positive.
This story was originally published August 15, 2020 at 12:01 PM with the headline "Miami-Dade passes COVID-19 milestone 2,000 deaths as Florida reports 6,362 new cases."
