WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Florida reported 8 additional coronavirus deaths, the lowest in three months with only 2 more reported in South Florida, including none in Palm Beach County, as cases increased by 2,423 and positivity rates remained encouraging, the Florida Health Department announced Sunday.
The state reported 13 new deaths Sunday from its previous daily report but 5 were removed after COVID-19 related was ruled out.
The first-time daily positivity rate in the state dropped from 4.42 percent to 4.26, one of 7 days over two weeks under 5 percent, compared with a two-week high 6.19 on Sept. 2. In Palm Beach County, the rate slightly rose to 3.25 from 3.06 percent, one of eight days over 14 days under 4 percent. The county's two-week high was 5.77 on Tuesday.
The daily rate for all tests decreased to a two-week low 5.6 percent on 62,318 tests reported by the labs to the state Saturday compared with 5.80 on 79.167 tests the day before. The two-week high was 10.32 percent with a data dump by Quest Diagnostics last week.
Sunday's death increase is a dramatic change from the past three months.
On Monday, June 15, 7 deaths were reported with a total death toll of 2,423. Since then fatalities have skyrocketed to 12,608 with an average of 113 over 90 days. The previous low was 14 additional deaths on Sunday, Aug. 30.
On Saturday, deaths rose by 98 after 176 Friday, 211 Thursday and 200 Wednesday. The previous 200-plus day was Aug. 18. The state record was 276 on Aug. 11.
On Tuesday, one day after Labor Day, the death increase was 44 after trending lower for four days: 22 Monday, 38 last Sunday, 61 last Saturday, 100 last Friday and 149 last Thursday.
Since the first two deaths were announced on March 6, the death toll has climbed to 12,764 including 156 nonresidents, which didn't change.
Florida is in fifth place in the United States. On June 16, Florida was in 11th place in the nation.
Texas is in fourth place with the addition of 47 deaths Sunday after a state-record 324 on Aug. 11, for a total of 114,190. California reported a U.S.-high 78 new deaths and is in third place overall with 14,329, just 139 ahead of Texas.
Florida's cases rose 2,564 Saturday after 3,650 Friday, 2,583 Thursday and 2,056 Wednesday. For two days in a row the state's infections were under 1,900 –1,823 Tuesday and 1,838 Monday. Last Sunday's case rise was 2,564.
Cases had been under 2,000 only one other time in three months – 1,885 last Monday. On June 15, cases increased 1,758.
Palm Beach County's death total remained 1,196, third highest in the state behind Miami-Dade and Broward, after 3 deaths were reported Saturday.
On the Treasure Coast, the only death reported was a 65-year-old woman in Indian River, rising to 106. St. Lucie County remained at 256 and Martin at 127. Okeechobee has 21 with its first two deaths on July 25.
Broward increased by 1 and Miami-Dade decreased by 2.
In South Florida, there was a net change of no deaths, for a total of 5,866 at 46.6 percent though the population only comprises 30 percent.
Pinellas decreased by 2 to 701 deaths in fourth place and Hillsborough went up by 1 to 586 in fifth place. Polk remained at 488 in sixth and Lee stayed at 448.
Palm Beach County's daily cases increased by 152 after 149 the day before and 100 last week.
Florida's new hospitalizations rose by 194 compared with 214 the day before. The state reported Sunday there are currently 2,645 hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of COVID-19, which is 38 less than the day before.
Deaths
It took 49 days for the death toll to reach the first 1,000 yet it was only 40 days to more than double.
Less than two months ago there, July 20, there were 5,075 deaths.
State and county increases represent fatalities received by the state Saturday and not the number of deaths that occurred then. The day someone dies and when it is received by the state can lag for several days. The most deaths the past month: 119 on Aug. 14.
Deaths rose by 759 in the state over seven days (a daily average of 108) for 6.4 percent, a figure tally that had been more than 1,200 deaths recently. Two months ago the one-week figure was in the mid 200s. Palm Beach County rose by 30 for 2.5 percent. The U.S. figure is 2.7 percent with the world at 3.9 percent.
Miami-Dade decreased to 2,880, which is 225 more in one week. Broward increased to 1,280 with a rise of 65 in one week. St. Lucie has risen by 11 deaths in one week compared with Martin by 7, Indian River by 2and Okeechobee by 1.
Palm Beach County's death count is higher than 21 states, including Rhode Island's 1,071 with no data Sunday.
Cases
Since the first two cases were announced on March 1, Florida's total has surged to 3.1 percent of the state's 21.48 million population with 663,994, second in the nation. The average over six months is 3,388 per day.
In one week, cases have risen by 17,563, which average 2,509 per day, at 2.7 percent, a percentage that has been steadily decreasing.
Cases passed 600,000 Aug. 23 and 500,000 on Aug. 5.
California has the most cases in the U.S. at 754,923 with the addition of a U.S.-high 4,625. Texas had 1,840, and is third overall with 659,434. New York, which was the leader during much of the pandemic, is in fourth at 444,365 with 725 more.
Florida's daily case increases have been below 10,000 since July 26 when they climbed by 12,199. Early in the pandemic, cases were under 1,000 with the last one of three digits 966 on June 8.
The cases record was 15,300 was July 5 – the highest daily figure ever in the United States.
In Palm Beach County, new cases have been much lower since the record 1,171 July 5. The total now is 44,025, including residents and nonresidents.
Miami-Dade's cases were 296 compared with 415 and Broward's increase was 161 vs. 189. In the Treasure Coast area, the rise over one day was 9 in Martin, 23 in St. Lucie, 12 in Indian River, 8 in Okeechobee.
Testing
Florida's total number of people tested is 4,930,974, fourth in the nation, behind No. 1 New York, No. 2 California and No. 3 Texas. That Florida figure is 23.0 percent of Florida's population.
The overall positive rate dropped to 13.47 percent from 13.48 the day before.
The daily rate at one time was around 2-3 percent. The record is 20.71 percent on July 8.
The record test total was 142,964 July 11.
In Palm Beach County, the last time the first-time rate has been above 10.0 percent was 10.2 percent on Aug. 4.
Miami-Dade's rate has been less than 5 percent for three days in a row, a two-week low of 4.34 two days after 4.85 then 4.71 and a two-week high of 7.84, which doesn't include the Quest Diagnostics data dump, on Aug. 31. The rate hit 26.4 on July 8. Broward's rate was 3.02 after a two-week low of 2.59 , two weeks in a row under 5 percent with the high of 4.76 on Aug. 31, not including the data dump.
Elsewhere, St. Lucie's rate was a 14-day low of 2.39 percent after 3.64 and a high of 6.95 on Tuesday. Martin's rate also was a two-week low, 2.17 percent, after 5.06, a two-week high of 8.38 percent one day earlier and a high of 9.68 on Tuesday. Indian River's rate 3.46 after 2.08 percent, one of 6 days near 2 percent and below over 2 weeks, and a high of 4.18 on Monday. Okeechobee's rate was 10.23 percent on 79 tests after a two-week high of 13.04 on 100 tests, a low of 1.92 on 153 negative tests on Sept. 3.
Palm Beach County has 44,025 cases out of 343,688 total tested for 12.81 percent overall, not including those awaiting tests and inconclusive.
Miami-Dade leads with 164,086 positive cases out of 860,634 tested for 19.07 percent, and Broward is second with 74,434 cases and 535,068 tested for 13.94 percentage.
In Martin County, it's 4,558 of 32,490 for 14.03 percent. In St. Lucie, it's 7,544 out of 56,081 for 13.45 percent, Indian River with 2,983 of 33,057 for 9.02 percent and Okeechobee 1,333 of 10,369 for 12.86 percent.
Mortality rate
The mortality rate compares positive cases against deaths.
The state's rate is 1.9 percent for all deaths and cases, including nonresidents, compared with 3.0 percent in the United States and 3.1 percent worldwide, which neared 928,000 deaths and passed 29.1 million cases Sunday, according to Worldometers.info.
Palm Beach County's rate was 2.7 percent, compared with Broward at 1.7 percent and Miami-Dade with 1.8 percent. With much fewer deaths, the mortality rate is 3.4 percent in St. Lucie, 2.8 percent in Martin, 3.6 percent in Indian River and 1.6 percent in Okeechobee.
Florida has 587 deaths per 1 million people compared with the U.S. average of 600 per million. New York, which represents 17.1 percent of the deaths in the nation, has 1,702 per million. Worldwide, the figure is 119.0 per million.
Age breakdown
The median age for all deaths in Florida is 79.
Four deaths are among youths 14 and under: a 6-year-old from Hillsborough, a 9-year-year old from Putnam and two 11-year-olds, a boy in Miami-Dade and a girl in Broward. This class did not change.
Four other juveniles are among the 29 deaths, which was no change, in the 15-24 class: a 16-year-old girl in Miami-Dade, a 16-year-old girl in Lee, a 17-year-old boy in Pasco and a 17-year-old boy in Manatee.
Eighty-four people from 25 to 34 also have died from the virus with no change.
A total of 4,095 people 85 and older have died in the state from the virus, an increase of 1 in one day.
Ninety-three percent of the fatalities are 55 and older and 61 percent are 75 and older. A smaller percentage of older people have tested positive – 28 percent age 55 and older and 7 percent 75 and older.
At the other end of the age spectrum, there are 11,249 cases of infants to 4 years old, an increase of 52, and 259 were hospitalized, with an increase of 1. From ages 5-14, there are 27,563, an increase of 143 with 235 in the hospital at one time, with 1 addition.
From the infant to 54 age group, 472,653 of the 656,485 residents' cases. In that group, 851 have died, with no change, for a 0.18 death percentage. From infant to 64, there are 556,215 cases. A total of 2,225 have died, an increase of 1, for a 0.40 percentage.
Cities
West Palm Beach is in first place among Palm Beach County cities with 10,877, with an increase of 25. Lake Worth, which includes the city and county portion, rose by 27 to 7,585 followed by Boca Raton at 6,191, up from 6,158, Boynton Beach at 3,893 from 3,878 and Delray Beach at 3,009 vs. 3,000. A total of 1,002 in the county not designated by a city.
Port St. Lucie leads the Treasure Coast with 4,414, an increase of 20 followed by Fort Pierce at 2,688, up 2, and Stuart with 2,127, which was an increase of 4.
In Indian River County, Fellsmere, which has a population of 5,754, increased by 1 to 398 compared with only 3 on May 31.
Hospitalizations
A total of 41,297 people in the state have been hospitalized, a rise from 40,024 seven days ago. That means it is a running total and includes people who have been released or died.
The number is 3,492 in Palm Beach County, with no change compared with 15 the day before; 383 in Martin, which rose by 1; 614 in St. Lucie with an increase of 2, Indian River remained at 279 and Okeechobee rose from 151 to 152.
Long-term care
Forty-one percent of the deaths, 5,197, are residents and staff of long-term care, including 520 in Palm Beach County, which is second most in the state behind 759 in Miami-Dade. The state increase was 56 and in Palm Beach County it went up by 1.
National
Since the first death was reported six months ago on Feb. 29, the toll has risen to 194,069, a gain of 376, according to Johns Hopkins. Worldometers reported a gain of 392 to 198,520.
Cases reached 6,485,214 with an increase of 34,035. They have exceeded 70,000 seven times, including a record 78,446 on July 24 and the last time was July 31.
Last Sunday in the U.S., there were 403 more deaths and 31,395 cases.
The one week U.S. death increase was 5,128 at 2.7 percent.
New York has the most deaths in the nation at 33,029 with 6 reported Sunday, after a high of 799 in April.
Among other states in the top 10 for deaths: No. 2 New Jersey 4, No. 6 Massachusetts 14, No. 7 Illinois 14, No. 8 Pennsylvania no data, No. 9 Michigan no data, No. 10 Georgia 46.
Also, No. 11 Arizona reported 7 deaths, as well as an additional 384 cases. No. 23 Washington, the original epicenter in the United States, reported 0 deaths Saturday and Sunday.
Worldwide
The U.S. represented 10.0 percent of the 3,905 additional deaths Sunday and 21.3 percent of the world total though its population is only 4.3 percent of the global total. The one week world death increase was 35,230 at 3.9 percent.
Last Sunday's death increase was 4,207.
Cases increased by 243,969 after a record 310,692 Friday, according to Worldometers.info.
Brazil, which is second behind the United States for deaths, reported 389 deaths to rise to 131,663. Brazil's record is 1,554 on July 29. The nation added 14,597 cases at 4,330,455 in third place.
India reported 94,551 cases, one day after a record 97,570, to rise to 4,754,861, which is second in world behind U.S. India also recorded 1,114 deaths, behind the record 1,209 three days ago, to rise to 77,472 and in third place.
Mexico announced 217 more deaths late Sunday compared with a high of 1,092 on June 4 for a total of 668,381 in fourth place.
Four European nations are in the top 10. The United Kingdom reported 5 additional deaths for 41,628 in fifth place with the record daily high 1,172. No. 6 Italy, which at one time was the world's epicenter and reached 919 in one day, reported 7 deaths. No. 7 France reported 6 new deaths and 7,183 cases two days after a record 10,561. No. 9 Spain reported no data.
No. 8 Peru gained 117 deaths and No. 10 Iran had 128.
Russia is in fourth place in the world in cases with 1,062,811 including an additional 5,449. The nation gained 94 deaths and is in 12th.
No. 19 Canada reported 1 deaths, after none two days ago for the first time since March, at 9,171 and 518 cases.
Sweden, which has been doing "herd immunity," reported not data and has 5,846 total. Neighboring Norway reported no deaths for the second day in a row to remain at 265, as well as 75 more cases.
No. 28 China, the original epicenter of the world, hasn’t reported a death since April 26, and added `10 cases Sunday.
Japan added 16 cases for a total of 1,439.