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Florida adds 5,539 coronavirus cases, 126 deaths Sunday

The coronavirus case average increased slightly as the state comes up on one year of the pandemic
 
Florida added more than 5,000 coronavirus cases Sunday
Florida added more than 5,000 coronavirus cases Sunday [ Photo illustration by ASHLEY DYE and MARTHA ASENCIO RHINE | Times ]
Published Feb. 28, 2021|Updated Feb. 28, 2021

Florida recorded 5,539 coronavirus cases Sunday, bringing the total number of cases identified over nearly a year to 1,909,221.

The state’s weekly case average increased slightly to about 5,778 cases announced per day. On Sunday, the Florida Department of Health also announced 126 deaths from the virus.

In Florida, there have been 31,406 deaths from the virus. About 139 people are announced dead per day, based on the weekly average.

About 102,000 tests were processed on Saturday, resulting in a single day positivity rate of 6.4 percent.

Vaccinations: More than three million people in Florida have been vaccinated against coronavirus as of Sunday afternoon.

Statewide, 3,017,661 people have been vaccinated, an increase of 43,879 from the day prior. Of the three million, a little more than half have received both their first and second shot and are fully immunized.

In Hillsborough, 145,634 people are vaccinated; in Pinellas, 145,863; in Polk, 71,459; in Manatee, 55,557; in Pasco, 66,773; in Hernando, 25,205; and in Citrus, 25,408.

Hospitalizations: About 3,700 people in Florida are hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of coronavirus, according to the Agency for Health Care Administration. About 760 of those patients are in the Tampa Bay area.

Statewide, about 25 percent of hospital beds and 24 percent of ICU beds are available. Locally, about 23 percent of hospital beds and 22 percent of ICU beds are open.

Morton Plant Hospital, which has the largest ICU capacity in Pinellas, had no beds open as of Sunday afternoon.

Cases that resulted in a hospitalization increased by 105 admissions.

Positivity: Florida’s average weekly positivity rate is about 6 percent, according to Johns Hopkins University. It is one of 22 states that fails to meet the World Health Organization’s recommendation for a 5 percent positivity rate or below before loosening movement restrictions.

When the positivity rate is too high, it indicates there isn’t enough widespread testing to capture mild, asymptomatic and negative cases.

Local numbers: Tampa Bay added 873 coronavirus cases and 10 deaths Sunday.

Five deaths were in Hillsborough, two were recorded in both Citrus and Pasco and one was in Pinellas.

Hernando leads the area with an average weekly positivity rate of 8 percent, followed by Hillsborough, Pasco and Polk at 7 percent, Manatee at 6 percent and Citrus and Pinellas at 5 percent.

As of the latest count, Hillsborough has 111,441 cases and 1,520 deaths; Pinellas has 66,571 cases and 1,454 deaths; Polk has 57,096 cases and 1,147 deaths; Manatee has 31,909 cases and 601 deaths; Pasco has 33,377 cases and 655 deaths; Hernando has 11,295 cases and 403 deaths; and Citrus has 9,756 cases and 402 deaths.

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