Florida adds 3,650 coronavirus cases, and more than 170 new deaths push toll past 12,500
Florida’s Department of Health on Friday confirmed 3,650 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state’s known total to 658,381. There were also 176 Florida resident deaths announced, bringing the resident death toll to 12,502.
There were no new non-resident deaths announced on Friday. The cumulative death toll of non residents in the state is 156.
Friday’s single-day count of newly confirmed case is the most Florida has reported since Saturday’s 3,656 cases. Friday’s percent positivity was 5.53% for new cases.
If retests are included, the positivity rate was 6.85%. The percent positivity rate in cases has decreased since July, which saw positivity rates in double digits.
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 481 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 47 new deaths, according to Florida’s Department of Health. The county now has 163,375 confirmed cases and 2,836 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 4.86%. The 14-day positivity average is 6.09%, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard.
▪ Broward County reported 215 additional confirmed cases of the disease and 18 new deaths. The county has a known total of 74,084 cases and 1,276 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 3.19%.
▪ Palm Beach County saw 192 additional confirmed cases and six new deaths. The county has 43,724 confirmed cases and 1,193 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 4.64%.
▪ Monroe County saw 11 additional confirmed cases and no new deaths. The county has a known total of 1,778 cases and 20 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 7.00%.
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 6:31 p.m. Friday, there were 2,815 COVID-19 patients admitted into hospitals throughout the state, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration dashboard.
Of those, 472 were in Miami-Dade, 312 in Broward, 153 in Palm Beach and three in Monroe counties, 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 Friday, Miami-Dade hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications decreased from 579 to 556, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard. According to Friday’s data, 83 people were discharged and 51 people were admitted.
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The state has had a total of 41,021 Florida residents hospitalized for COVID-19-related complications, according to Florida’s COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard.
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 positivity 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 Friday, Florida’s Department of Health reported the results of 73,831 people tested on Thursday. The positivity rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) was 5.53%.
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If retests are included — people who have tested positive once and are being tested for a second time — the positivity rate was 6.85% of the total, according to the report.
This story was originally published September 11, 2020 at 1:17 PM.
