Coronavirus Weekly Report: Cases Surge To New Highs As Delta Variant Spreads

Health officials reported Friday that 23,933 more Floridians have tested positive for coronavirus.

In addition, 29 new COVID-19 related deaths were recorded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Hospitalizations rose by 44 to 15,840 patients with COVID-19, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It's the fifth straight day Florida COVID-19 hospitalizations reached a record level.

In addition, 48.5% of the state's staffed ICU beds were taken by 3,230 coronavirus patients.

For the week ending on Thursday, Aug. 12, the state reported an additional 151,415 cases of the coronavirus – the highest weekly total yet. The state’s total count increased to 2,877,214.

The positivity rate for new cases statewide rose to 19.3%.

Officials also reported 1,071 deaths during the week, though they may have occurred in previous weeks or months.

Each week, the Florida Department of Health will provide updates on the number of coronavirus cases, changes in positivity rate, vaccinations, and other statewide and county-by-county data.

The following is a summary from Aug. 6-12, 2021.

Cases: 2,877,214 positive cases, an increase of 151,415 from the previous week.

Vaccinations: 12,420,704 Florida residents have been vaccinated, a weekly increase of 271,786. In all, 65% of Florida’s population over the age of 12 has received at least one dose of vaccine.

Positivity Rate: The positivity rate for new cases was 19.3%, up from 18.9% the previous week.

Deaths: A total of 40,766 Florida residents have died from a primary diagnosis of COVID-19, an increase of 1,071 from the previous week.

(NOTE: Cases and deaths in the report may have happened days or weeks earlier, according to state officials. The state is also now only counting deaths involving Florida residents.)

ABOUT THE DATA: As of June 4, 2021, the Florida Department of Health no longer offers daily updates on coronavirus data, and instead issues a county-by-county and statewide weekly breakdown on about COVID-19 cases, deaths, and other information. Cases and deaths in the report may have happened days or weeks earlier, according to state officials. The state is also now only counting deaths involving Florida residents.

Copyright 2021 WUSF Public Media - WUSF 89.7