Florida COVID update for Saturday: 74 resident deaths as vaccinations top 5 million

Howard Cohen
·3 min read

Florida’s Department of Health on Saturday announced 6,323 new confirmed cases of COVID-19.

Other things to know:

▪ The state on Saturday announced 74 new resident deaths but no new non-resident deaths.

▪ Florida reported the results of 92,206 residents tested on Friday. The state’s percent positivity increased from 6.83% to 6.88%. The 14-day positivity rate was 7.14%.

▪ The state has recorded a known total of 2,162,067 coronavirus cases and 35,074 deaths. Among those who died, 34,404 were residents and 670 were nonresidents.

▪ More than 5 million Floridians have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna or have completed Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine, according to Saturday’s vaccine report.

COVID-19 in Florida

▪ Miami-Dade County reported 1,444 new cases. The county added 14 deaths, putting its pandemic totals at 468,908 cases and 6,043 deaths.

In Miami-Dade, 388,967 people have received the first dose of Pfizer or Moderna and 668,502 people have either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer or Moderna.

Percent positivity increased from 6.71% to 7%. The 14-day average was 7.28% on Saturday’s Miami-Dade New Normal report.

▪ Broward County reported 748 new cases and seven new deaths — putting its pandemic totals at 227,738 cases and 2,769 deaths.

In Broward, 278,004 people have received the first dose of Pfizer or Moderna and 446,964 people have either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer or Moderna.

Percent positivity decreased from 7.12% to 6.97%.

▪ Palm Beach County reported 413 new cases and two new deaths, bringing its cumulative count to 138,476 cases and 2,717 deaths.

In Palm Beach, 211,400 people have received the first dose of Pfizer or Moderna and 370,744 people have either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer or Moderna.

Percent positivity decreased from 6.12% to 5.98%.

▪ Monroe County added 20 new cases and no deaths. Pandemic totals in the Keys are at 6,731 cases and 50 deaths.

In Monroe, 11,630 people have received the first dose of Pfizer or Moderna and 19,260 people have either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer or Moderna.

Percent positivity increased from 5.1% to 6.54%

Does COVID test positivity still matter? Vaccines are upending trusted virus metrics

FLORIDA COVID-19 HOSPITALIZATIONS

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.

Government officials use current hospitalizations to decide the next steps in fighting the pandemic.

As of 2:30 p.m. Saturday, the agency said there were 3,253 people hospitalized. Of these, Miami-Dade had 583; Broward, 495; Palm Beach, 203; and Monroe, five, the agency said.

According to Miami-Dade’s New Normal Dashboard, county hospitals have reported 596 COVID-19 patients, down from 616 on Thursday. There were 73 new patients and 101 were discharged.

State hospitalization data doesn’t always match Miami-Dade’s New Normal Dashboard data for various reasons, including the frequency of daily updates.