Florida adds highest daily coronavirus caseload since Aug. 12 with 6,933

Florida added 6,933 coronavirus cases Friday, the highest single-day total since Aug. 12, excluding a day with irregular data.

The weekly average caseload jumped upward to about 5,418 infections announced per day. Since March, 870,552 cases of coronavirus have been identified across Florida.

The only higher day since August came Sept. 1, when Quest Diagnostics unloaded a backlog of 75,000 tests to the state.

The Florida Department of Health announced 74 deaths from the virus, bringing the total number of people who have died to 17,659. The weekly death average increased to about 62 people announced dead per day.

Just under 95,000 tests were processed for the day, with a daily positivity rate of about 8 percent.

Hospitalizations: About 3,050 people are hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of coronavirus statewide, according to the Agency for Health Care Administration. About 690 people are hospitalized in the Tampa Bay area.

About 22 percent of Florida’s hospital beds and 21 percent of its ICU beds are available statewide. In Tampa Bay, about 22 percent of hospital beds and 19 percent of ICU beds are available. Large area providers, like Tampa General Hospital and Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point, only had a handful of ICU beds available as of Friday morning.

Cases that resulted in a hospitalization increased by 271 admissions.

Positivity: Florida’s average weekly positivity rate is about 8 percent, according to Johns Hopkins University. It is one of 39 states that exceed the World Health Organization recommendation for a rate of 5 percent or below.

When the positivity rate is too high, it can indicate there isn’t enough widespread testing to capture mild and asymptomatic cases, meaning cases of the virus can go undetected and spread further.

Local numbers: Tampa Bay added 966 coronavirus cases and 15 deaths Friday.

Eight deaths were reported in Pasco, three were in Polk, two were in Hillsborough and both Hernando and Pinellas had one.

Citrus leads the area with a 12 percent weekly average positivity rate, followed by Hillsborough, Polk and Pasco at 8 percent, Hernando and Pinellas at 7 percent and Manatee at 6 percent.

As of the latest counts, Hillsborough has 52,330 cases and 862 deaths; Pinellas has 28,746 cases and 854 deaths; Polk has 24,941 cases and 649 deaths; Manatee has 14,522 cases and 342 deaths; Pasco has 12,319 cases and 260 deaths; Hernando has 4,196 cases and 183 deaths; and Citrus has 3,828 cases and 144 deaths.

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