Pennsylvania reported 6,047 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, a hopeful sign the state won’t see a repeat of the December surge that brought twice that number of new infections daily.
The state reported 215 deaths — a relatively high figure but, since people usually die weeks after being infected, one that’s likely a delayed result of the earlier surge.
As of Friday morning, 4,848 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, another downward trend and well below the December peak when more than 6,300 were hospitalized.
Still, state health officials this week continued to stress the need to wear face masks, avoid large gatherings and wash hands frequently to prevent spread of COVID-19. The state has vaccinated roughly 400,000 people, mostly health care workers and nursing home residents, but still has a long way to go to protecting all of its most vulnerable residents, and is possibly months away from offering vaccine to everyone.
The new infections bring Pennsylvania’s total to 754,611 lab-confirmed or probable cases since the start of the pandemic nearly a year ago. Experts say 25-40 percent of people who test positive have no symptoms but still can infect others. The new deaths bring the total to 18,957, with most involving people over 65.