Florida health officials on Wednesday reported that another 1,948 people across the state have tested positive for COVID-19, and another 175 more people have died from the disease.
These numbers on the latest official coronavirus pandemic report are consistent with and generally better than the data for the past three Wednesdays.
Sept. 9 showed 2,056 new COVID-19 cases and 202 deaths; then on Sept. 16, it was 2,355 new infections and 154 fatalities; and on Sept. 23, the state reported 2,590 new cases and 203 deaths.
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The Department of Health data shows the state made it through the month without a serious outbreak, but the virus is continuing to spread and kill people even as the state reopened more businesses and schools.
Florida officials has reported a total of 706,516 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 during the pandemic. The deaths of at least 14,488 people in the state have been linked to the disease.
Most of the deaths listed on the state’s daily statistical reports did not happen in the last 24 hours. There is usually a lag of several weeks between the date of death and confirmation as a virus fatality.
Over the past seven days, Florida has reported an average of 100 deaths and an average of 2,288 cases on the daily data reports.
South Florida
Broward County: 98 additional confirmed coronavirus cases were reported Wednesday. The county has tallied 77,220 cases and 1,423 deaths, 12 more than Tuesday’s total.
Palm Beach County: 67 additional cases of COVID-19 were reported Wednesday. The county has had 46,552 confirmed cases and 1,390 deaths linked to the disease. Nineteen more deaths were reported since Tuesday.
Miami-Dade County: 314 additional cases were reported Wednesday. The county has had a total of 170,400 cases and 3,301 deaths — 37 more than Tuesday’s report.
Testing and positivity rates
At least 5.3 million people have been tested for COVID-19 in Florida since the pandemic began, producing an overall positivity rate of 13.31%, state data show. At least 706,516 people have tested positive and 4.59 million people have tested negative.
In South Florida, the cumulative positivity rates are 18.56% for Miami-Dade County, 13.55% for Broward County and 12.61% for Palm Beach County. As of Wednesday, 918,330 people have been swabbed in Miami-Dade, 569,902 people have been tested in Broward, and 369,312 people have been tested for COVID-19 in Palm Beach County.
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The daily testing positivity rate for Florida continues to hover around 5%, as it has for the last four weeks. Public health experts say the virus is under control at this level.
State data show the positivity at 5.03%, down from 4.96% the previous day. This figure reflects only new infections based on COVID-19 testing for the day; it does not count people who previously tested positive for the disease.
The daily positivity rates reported Wednesday were 2.72% for Broward County, down from 3.06% the day before; 3.18% for Palm Beach County, down from 4.1%; and 4.8% for Miami-Dade County, down from 6.78%.
Wednesday’s report from the state shows test results for 44,812 Florida residents, up from 70,881 results reported the previous day. The results include retests of people who were previously diagnosed.
Rapid tests coming: During a Tuesday news conference, Gov. Ron DeSantis said by the end of this week, Florida will begin receiving 6.4 million rapid COVID-19 tests from the federal government. The first priority is sending them to senior care centers and retirement communities, and then schools.
Made by Abbott Laboratories, the tests can produce results within 15 minutes, based on a quick nasal swab. DeSantis called it a “game changer” for testing vulnerable adults and schoolchildren.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the rapid test for emergency use. But agency officials have also said negative results are not certain proof a person isn’t infected. Abbott says the tests are accurate and reliable.
The governor pointed out the rapid tests will give long-term care facilities the ability to test visitors quickly, meaning residents could see their loved ones with less waiting.
“Being able to give those folks the ability to reunite and be there in person with family members is a huge part of health,” DeSantis said.
Hospitalizations
As of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, 2,085 people across the state were hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of COVID-19. The number is down 342 since 2 p.m. Tuesday.
Broward County reported 186 patients currently hospitalized; Palm Beach County had 111; and Miami-Dade had the most in the state with 269.
The online report from the state Agency for Health Care Administration updates several times throughout the day. Hospitalizations have been going down since hitting a peak in late July.
Since the pandemic began, a total of 44,108 residents have been hospitalized for the disease in Florida, according to the state Department of Health.
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Deaths
Statewide: The official COVID-19 report, updated Wednesday, shows 14,317 Florida resident deaths. In addition, 171 non-resident deaths have been attributed to the virus in the state. The state does not say whether the victims had underlying health conditions.
Florida’s COVID-19 death rate is eleventh among states in the nation — tied with Georgia and South Carolina, with 66 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Long-term care facilities: At least 5,835 deaths have occurred among residents and staff of nursing homes and assisted-living centers throughout Florida. That’s 67 more than reported Tuesday.
Miami-Dade County has had the highest number of deaths at long-term care facilities, with 799, three more than the previous day; Palm Beach County is up to 600 deaths, 11 more than on Tuesday; and Broward has had 406 deaths, five more than Tuesday.
National and global view
U.S.: More than 7.21 million people in the country have been infected with the novel coronavirus and 206,615 have died as of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center.
World: At least 33.8 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 1,010,288 people have died from the disease, according to Johns Hopkins. The U.S. has had the most COVID-19 cases and deaths of any country. The U.S. has 4.3% of the world’s population, but 21.35% of the world’s cases and 20.45% of the world’s deaths.
Marc Freeman can be reached at mjfreeman@sunsentinel.com and on Twitter @marcjfreeman.
