Ohio COVID-19 Surge: 41K New Cases, Numbers Inflated By Backlog

OHIO — More than 41,000 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed in Ohio on Friday, though the numbers were inflated as laboratories catch up on a backlog of unconfirmed tests.

In the past 24 hours, 41,455 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed by health officials, which would be a single-day record. However, on Friday, the Ohio Department of Health released a statement saying there was a backlog of cases being added to Friday's totals, inflating the numbers.

COVID-19 hospitalizations and intensive care admissions were also up Friday, though, with no backlog to explain the increase. In the past 24 hours, 472 Ohioans were hospitalized due to COVID-19, while 36 Ohioans were moved to intensive care units because of the virus.

Currently, there are 6,488 Ohioans hospitalized due to COVID-19, according to the Ohio Hospital Association. That's actually down one percent over the past week, but up 40 percent over the past three weeks. One out of every three hospitalized Ohioans is COVID-19 positive.

Inflation Problems

Inflated cases totals won't be a one-day problem for the state's COVID-19 reporting system. Additional backlog-inflated totals are also expected in coming days, the Ohio Department of Health warned.

The backlog was created by an unprecedented surge in positive COVID-19 tests, the department added, meaning Ohio may have experienced a record high in cases earlier this week, but was unable to process all of the relevant tests.

The Ohio Department of Health said it is continuing to update its COVID-19 test reporting system after discovering some of its components were "antiquated."

This article originally appeared on the Cleveland Patch