Reported coronavirus hospitalizations reach another new high in North Carolina
The number of people reported hospitalized due to COVID-19 in North Carolina reached another single-day high on Monday.
According to the latest update from the state’s Department of Health and Human Services, 739 people are sickened enough by the virus to be hospitalized. That’s an increase of 43 people over Sunday’s update and surpasses the previous single-day high of 717 set on Friday.
The DHHS determined Monday’s figure based on 77% of the state’s hospitals reporting information. By comparison, 87 percent of hospitals reported on Friday.
The state reported 938 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the total to 36,484 since the first case was confirmed in North Carolina on March 3. The 10 new deaths from COVID-19 increased the state’s total to 1,006.
Monday is the fourth consecutive day the number of newly reported cases has exceeded 900. The seven-day average for new cases in a day is 1,032 — the first time that average has exceeded 1,000.
One week ago, on June 1, the seven-day average was 757.
Monday’s update added 8,847 new test results to the data. That’s the lowest single-day testing total since June 1. Lower testing totals are common following a weekend.
The percentage of tests coming back positive remained at 9% on Monday for the second day in a row. The daily percentage of positive tests hasn’t been below 8% since May 19 when it was 7%. The following day, Gov. Roy Cooper signed his next executive order moving the state into Phase Two of his reopening plan.
Since then, DHHS data showed that percentage as high as 10 percent on five days, most recently on Saturday.
Even as cases and hospitalizations reach record levels, the state’s healthcare system appears ready to handle an additional surge. According to state data, 74 percent of the ventilators in the state are available while 25 percent of in-patient beds and 14 percent of intensive care beds are currently vacant.
The News & Observer is keeping its own tally of coronavirus data reported by the NC DHHS and county health departments. As of Monday afternoon, there were 36,466 cases and 1,041 deaths.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
This story was originally published June 8, 2020 at 12:16 PM with the headline "Reported coronavirus hospitalizations reach another new high in North Carolina."