Nevada adds 309 COVID-19 cases, 10 deaths as positivity rate slides

Nevada on Tuesday reported 309 new coronavirus cases and 10 additional deaths over the preceding day.

Updated figures from the Department of Health and Human Services posted to the state’s coronavirus website brought cumulative totals to 294,289 cases and 4,967 deaths since the pandemic began.

The additional deaths were the first reported by the state since Saturday, and were slightly above the moving 14-day average of seven fatalities per day, according to records maintained by the Review-Journal.

New cases were also slightly above the moving two-week average recorded by the state, which dropped to 292 on Tuesday.

The average for cases and deaths have both been trending downward since mid-January, according to state data.

Both the state and county health agencies often redistribute data after it is reported to better reflect the date of death or onset of symptoms, which is why the moving-average trend lines frequently differ from daily reports and are considered better indicators of the direction of the outbreak.

The state’s two-week positivity rate, which essentially tracks the percentage of people tested who are found to be infected, decreased by 0.2 percentage points, reaching 7.3 percent.

Hospitalization levels in the state also have plunged since reaching a high of 2,126 suspected or confirmed COVID-19 on Dec. 22, according to the state data. As of Tuesday’s update, the number of hospitalized stood at 459, a level not seen since October, before the winter spike.

Clark County on Tuesday reported 236 new coronavirus cases and 13 additional deaths — or three more than the number reported by the state. Southern Nevada Health District spokeswoman Jennifer Sizemore said the reason for the discrepancy was unclear.

“I know this has occurred previously,” Sizemore said in an emailed statement. “I don’t know if this reflects a true discrepancy in the numbers or is just an issue that occurs when reporting on a daily basis.”

Cumulative totals for the county on Tuesday rose to 227,107 cases and 3,871 deaths, according to data posted to the Southern Nevada Health District’s coronavirus website.

The county’s 14-day positivity rate dropped to 8.1 percent on Tuesday, which is a 0.3-percentage-point decrease from the day prior. The rate is 0.8 percentage points higher than the state’s average.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.