Virginia Jan. 27 COVID-19 update: 5,227 new cases, daily deaths hit new record high; Northam to speak at 2

Posted: Jan 27, 2021 / 11:31 AM EST

Updated: Jan 27, 2021 / 11:34 AM EST

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia reported another 5,227 coronavirus cases on Wednesday as deaths per day reached a new record high.

Statewide numbers

New cases: (+5,227 488,553 total), back up slightly after reporting down last week (4,709 per day on average, record is 6,166)
Case incidence rate: 55.3 per 100K people, back down down recently, considered fluctuating
New deaths (+54, 6,228 total), trending up overall (54 per day on average, a record), 93 reported on Tuesday
Current hospitalizations (+25, 2,868 total), back down slightly but still near peak
Testing (12.3% 7-day average of positive tests), back down recently, averaging around 31K tests per day
Doses administered (569,040, 24,790 on average, 71,459 fully vaccinated (not updated yet for Wednesday)
Doses distributed (1,156,500), only about 110,00 per week from federal government

The Virginia Department of Health reported 54 new COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday, which is also Virginia’s new average death record (54). That’s expected to continue to increase.

Hospitalizations have actually gone down slightly from their recent peak of about 3,200 current patients, but still remain high at 2,868 total, per the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association. 537 people are in the ICU statewide currently (ICU capacity at 84%).

All of Virginia is now in the 1b phase for vaccinations, though supply coming in from the federal government is still low at 110,000 per week. Even with the low supply, Virginia still ranks among the worst states for administering vaccines, per the CDC.

Gov. Northam’s office said the sluggish rollout is also due to these factors:

Data entry issues
Allocation to the federal partnership responsible for vaccinating long-term care facilities
Some providers who are continuing to save shots for future use

Northam is expected to discuss these issues and more during a press conference at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Local cases

Accomack: 2,295 cases, 159 hospitalized, 31 deaths (+5 cases, +2 hospitalized)
Chesapeake: 14,862 cases, 709 hospitalized, 128 deaths (+131 cases, + 4 hospitalized, +1 death)
Franklin: 830 cases, 43 hospitalized, 21 deaths (+6 cases)
Gloucester: 1,416 cases, 40 hospitalized, 24 deaths (+20 cases,+1 hospitalized)
Hampton: 6,901 cases, 225 hospitalized, 62 deaths (+97 cases, +2 hospitalized)
Isle of Wight: 2,086 cases, 98 hospitalized, 38 deaths (+16 cases, +1 death)
James City County: 3,269 cases, 112 hospitalized, 37 deaths (+67 cases, +1 hospitalized)
Mathews: 415 cases, 16 hospitalized, 6 deaths (+1 cases)
Newport News: 9,401 cases, 242 hospitalized, 87 deaths (+185 cases, +2 hospitalized)
Norfolk: 12,400 cases, 669 hospitalized, 139 deaths (+132 cases, +3 hospitalized, +3 deaths)
Northampton: 611 cases, 63 hospitalized, 33 deaths (+2 cases)
Poquoson: 575 cases, 16 hospitalized, 7 deaths (+10 cases)
Portsmouth: 6,332 cases, 494 hospitalized, 96 deaths (+63 cases,+1 hospitalized)
Southampton: 1,661 cases, 41 hospitalized, 46 deaths (+3 cases)
Suffolk: 5,531 cases, 295 hospitalized, 108 deaths (+77 cases, +4 hospitalized, +1 death)
Virginia Beach: 25,199 cases, 1,047 hospitalized, 195 deaths (+281 cases, +14 hospitalized)
Williamsburg: 424 cases, 24 hospitalized, 9 deaths (-1 cases, +1 death)
York: 2,448 cases, 41 hospitalized, 16 deaths (+51 cases)