Coronavirus in Pa.: Nearly 5,000 new cases reported again – PennLive

Nearly 5,000 new COVID-19 cases have been reported statewide, the Pennsylvania Health Department said Tuesday.

The department reported 4,939 new cases Tuesday and the state has regularly approached or exceeded 5,000 cases per day over the last week. Earlier this summer, the number of new cases had dwindled to less than 200 a day.

Hospitalizations continue to rise. Across Pennsylvania, 2,421 people are being treated for COVID-19 in hospitals, including 609 patients in intensive care units, the health department reported. In July, the number of hospitalizations had dropped to about 250.

Penn State Health reported Monday 92 patients are being treated for COVID-19 in its hospitals, including 7 in the pediatric unit. The hospitals include the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Holy Spirit Medical Center in Cumberland County and St. Joseph Medical Center in Berks County.

The health department reported 68 new deaths Tuesday, raising the statewide total to 28,932. About half of the states COVID-19 deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes.

Health officials said nearly all the states hospitalizations and deaths since the beginning of the year have occurred among those who arent fully vaccinated.

Doctors and health officials continue to stress the COVID-19 vaccines offer the best protection against serious illness and death. As of Monday, 67.8% of Pennsylvanians age 18 and older are fully vaccinated.

Since the pandemic began, the state has reported 1,387,872 COVID-19 cases.

Every county in Pennsylvania continues to show high transmission of COVID-19, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The states positive test rate for COVID-19 was 8.9% from Sept. 10-16, down from 9.1% the previous week. That marked the first dip in the positive test rate in weeks.

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Coronavirus in Pa.: Nearly 5,000 new cases reported again - PennLive