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News about coronavirus in Florida and around the world is constantly emerging. It's hard to stay on top of it all but Health News Florida can help. Our responsibility is to keep you informed, and to help discern what’s important for your family as you make what could be life-saving decisions.

Florida Reports Fewest New COVID Cases Over A Week Since Mid-July

Despite the decline in new cases, Florida marked a somber milestone in the past week, surpassing 50,000 coronavirus deaths.

Florida coronavirus cases dropped for the third week in a row, according to data released Friday by the state Department of Health.

Despite the decline in new cases, Florida marked a somber milestone in the past week, surpassing 50,000 coronavirus deaths.

The 75,906 new cases of coronavirus reported for the week ending Thursday marked the lowest number since mid-July, when Florida was in the early phases of the surge driven by the highly contagious delta variant. The total was more than 24,000 fewer than last week.

The state’s daily average for the week was more than 10,800 new cases. A month ago, Florida was averaging more than 21,000 a day.

The positivity rate for new cases statewide dipped to 11.2%, its lowest since July 15.

The surge fueled by the delta variant appears to have reached its peak Aug. 20, when weekly cases totaled 151,880.

The majority of new cases were among children under 12 for the fourth week in a row. There were 12,202 cases in children under 12, about 5,000 fewer than last week.

The next highest number was 12,148 cases in the 30-39 age group.

Vaccinations have not yet been approved for ages 11 and younger.

As weekly numbers of cases were down across the state, Friday’s single-day count released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also showed a drop: 11,275, compared with 17,854 last Friday.

Hospitalizations also fell to below 10,000 for the first time since the end of July. A total of 9,585 people were in hospitals across Florida due to COVID-19, down more than 660 since Thursday.

As of Thursday, Florida had 51,240 COVID-related deaths another weekly high of 2,468 lives lost. The previous week, 2,448 people were reported dead with COVID-19 across the state.
While those deaths were recorded over their respective seven-day periods, they could have happened earlier.

The state last month switched from tallying deaths by the date they were verified to the date they occurred. As a result, it takes the state a while to process the information, so a single date's totals can grow days or even weeks later.

Each week, the Florida Department of Health provides 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 Sept. 10-Sept. 16, 2021.

Cases: 3,485,163 positive cases, an increase of 75,906 from the previous week.

Vaccinations: 13,427,208 Florida residents have been vaccinated, a weekly increase of 122,315. In all, 70% 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 11.2%, down from 13.5% the previous week.

Deaths: A total of 51,240 Florida residents have died from a primary diagnosis of COVID-19, an increase of 2,468 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

Kerry Sheridan is a reporter and co-host of All Things Considered at WUSF Public Media.