Nearly 2K New COVID-19 Cases In NC, Death Toll Rises to 1,479

Kimberly Johnson
·4 min read

CHARLOTTE, NC — Community spread of novel coronavirus led to 1,982 new lab-confirmed cases Friday, increasing the total number of known cases in North Carolina to more than 81,000, according to state public health officials.

Four counties in North Carolina, including Mecklenburg County, are at a "tipping point" and should revert to stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of COVID-19, Harvard Global Health Institute said Friday.

The increase occurred as a dozen new patients were hospitalized since Thursday, leading to another record- breaking day with 1,046 hospital beds filled with patients in need of medical treatment for COVID-19.

North Carolina's COVID-19 death toll also increased, up 18 since Thursday, raising the total to 1,479 lives lost to the virus, according to data released by the state's Department of Health and Human Services.

The data also points to an area of growing concern in the state that has not yet defined how schools will reopen next month — a decision North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said would be announced next week. As of Friday, at least 88 confirmed cases in North Carolina are associated with clusters reported at schools and child care centers.

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The increase in hospitalizations means that almost four out of every five inpatient and intensive care unit hospital bed is filled, according to DHHS data. A state survey of about 92 percent of North Carolina hospitals found that capacity remained available throughout the state Friday, with abut 4,112 inpatient hospital beds and 510 staffed intensive care unit beds remaining available.

Ventilator readiness remained stable with 74 percent — or about 2,473 — of the state's supply available for use.

The spread of novel coronavirus throughout North Carolina is starting to put the squeeze on hospital resources, particularly in the Charlotte metro region, state officials said Thursday.

"Our trends are not where we want them to be right now. It's good that we still have hospital and [intensive care unit] bed capacity, but we're watching closely and paying particular attention to hospitals in the Charlotte area," Gov. Roy Cooper said at a news conference Thursday. "Just take a look at some states where an uptick in cases quickly caused hospitals to fill up. We do not want that to happen here."

North Carolina's overall percent positive rate averages between eight and 10 percent, however, the rate of spread of COVID-19 is slightly higher in the Charlotte metro region. Nearly 12 percent of all COVID-19 tests in Mecklenburg County are positive, according to county health officials.

"We have seen these other states where you see elevated percent positives, hospital beds fill up and it can jump on you quickly," Cooper said.

South Carolina, for example, reported 1,433 hospitalizations Thursday, and said that 20.6 percent of those tested for COVID-19 were confirmed to have the virus.

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Mecklenburg, Hyde, Duplin and Tyrell counties are considered to be at COVID Risk level "Red," and are in need of stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of the virus, according to the Harvard Global Health Institute. The designation is given to counties experiencing a "tipping point," and reporting 25 or more COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people.

Only one county — Graham County in western North Carolina — reported less than one case per 100,000 and was considered to be on track for COVID-19 containment, according to the study.

DHHS said an estimated 55,318 patients were presumed recovered from symptoms as of July 6. The agency said it "estimates a median time to recovery of 14 days from the date of specimen collection for non-fatal COVID-19 cases who were not hospitalized, or if hospitalization status is unknown."

Globally, more than 12.3 million people have been infected by COVID-19, and more than 556,000 people have died, Johns Hopkins University reported Friday. In the United States, more than 3.1 million people have been infected and nearly 134,000 people have died from COVID-19.

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This article originally appeared on the Charlotte Patch