Florida adds 7,486 COVID cases and 142 deaths as the state’s positivity rate increases

Howard Cohen
·4 min read

Florida’s Department of Health on Saturday confirmed 7,486 additional cases of COVID-19 — the first Saturday since Nov. 28 in which cases didn’t top 10,000 or more. The state’s known total is now 1,771,359.

Florida is the third-highest state in the country in terms of cases after California and Texas, according to the New York Times database of U.S. cases.

Additionally, the state announced 142 resident deaths — the fewest since last Tuesday — to bring the resident death toll to 27,599.

Florida added three non-residents deaths to bring that death toll to 459. The state’s cumulative number of deaths is now 28,058.

Coronavirus vaccines in Florida

According to the state’s Saturday COVID-19 vaccination report, 1,324,705 people received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in Florida and 627,235 people have completed the series of two doses of either Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. According to the state, that means 1,951,940 have been vaccinated.

Of those who completed the two-dose vaccination, 88,933 were Miami-Dade County residents, 53,217 were Broward residents, 51,432 were Palm Beach residents and 3,127 were Monroe residents.

COVID doses administered in Florida as of Feb. 5, 2021. Also, persons who received their first dose of the vaccine and number who received second dose and completed the series.
COVID doses administered in Florida as of Feb. 5, 2021. Also, persons who received their first dose of the vaccine and number who received second dose and completed the series.

According to a New York Times vaccine rollout map, 8.7% of Floridians have been given at least one dose of the COVID vaccines and 2.4% received two doses.

Confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Florida

▪ Miami-Dade County reported 1,470 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 15 new deaths, according to Florida’s Department of Health. The county now has 382,186 confirmed cases and 4,979 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 7.3% to 6.12%. The 14-day percent positivity average went from 8.19% to 7.94%, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard.

▪ Broward County reported 797 additional confirmed cases of the disease and 12 new deaths. The county has a known total of 178,116 cases and 2,162 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases increased from 5.97% to 6.59%.

▪ Palm Beach County saw 531 additional confirmed cases and no new deaths. The county now has 110,639 confirmed cases and 2,249 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases increased from 5.96% to 6.83%.

▪ Monroe County confirmed 10 additional cases and one new death. The county has a known total of 5,465 cases and 42 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 3.78% to 3.15%

COVID-19 hospitalizations in Florida

One of the tools that officials rely on to determine whether the coronavirus situation is improving in the state is hospitalization data. Unlike testing, which might be limited or takes days to report results, hospitalizations can help give officials a real-time snapshot of how many people are severely ill with COVID-19.

The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration reports the number of patients hospitalized statewide with a “primary diagnosis of COVID.” The data, which is updated at least every hour, does not distinguish between the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital intensive care units and those in acute-care beds, which require less attention from nurses.

As of 8:45 a.m. Saturday, there were 5,436 COVID-19 patients admitted into hospitals throughout the state, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration dashboard. While hospitalizations are showing a decrease, this is still near mid-August levels, when more than 7,000 COVID-19 patients were admitted daily into hospitals throughout the state.

Of Saturday’s hospitalizations, 833 were in Miami-Dade, 612 in Broward, 376 in Palm Beach and six in Monroe, according to the agency. The numbers of hospitalizations have been on a downward trend.

Florida’s current hospitalization data does not always match the hospitalization data reported in Miami-Dade’s “New Normal” dashboard. Officials say this could be for a number of reasons, including the frequency of daily updates.

On Saturday, Miami-Dade hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications decreased from 918 to 914, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard. According to Saturday’s data, 151 people were discharged and 109 people were admitted.

The state has had a total of 74,267 Florida residents hospitalized for COVID-19-related complications, according to Florida’s COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard.

Coronavirus testing in Florida

Testing, like hospitalizations, helps officials determine the virus’ progress and plays a role in deciding whether it is safe to loosen restrictions.

Epidemiologists use the testing data to create a positivity rate. The rate helps them determine if a rise in cases is because of an increase in testing or whether there’s increased transmission of the virus in the community.

On Saturday, Florida’s Department of Health reported the results of 118,447 people tested on Friday. The positivity rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) increased from 5.8%. to 6.25%. On Saturday, the state reported about 70,000 fewer tests than reported on Friday.