Nearly a quarter of Florida’s new 8,436 COVID-19 cases come from Miami-Dade

Michelle Marchante

Florida’s Department of Health on Sunday confirmed 8,436 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state’s known total to 1,058,074. Also, 93 new resident deaths were announced, bringing the resident toll to 19,177.

Four new non-resident deaths were also announced, bringing the non-resident toll to 246.

Sunday is the first time in three days that the state’s single-day case count is less than 10,000. Testing was also down compared to the previous days though fewer tests are usually processed during the weekend .

Testing, like hospitalizations, helps officials determine the virus’ progress and plays a role in deciding whether it is safe to lift stay-at-home orders and loosen restrictions.

Epidemiologists use the testing data to create a positivity rate. The rate helps them determine if a rise in cases is because of an increase in testing or whether there’s increased transmission of the virus in the community.

On Sunday, Florida’s Department of Health reported the results of 118,590 people tested on Saturday. The positivity rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) increased from 7.31% to 7.86%.

On Sunday, Florida’s Department of Health reported the results of 118,590 people tested on Saturday. The positivity rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) increased from 7.31% to 7.86%. If retests are included — people who have tested positive once and are being tested for a second time — the positivity rate increased from 9.14% to 9.91%, according to the report.
On Sunday, Florida’s Department of Health reported the results of 118,590 people tested on Saturday. The positivity rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) increased from 7.31% to 7.86%. If retests are included — people who have tested positive once and are being tested for a second time — the positivity rate increased from 9.14% to 9.91%, according to the report.

If retests are included — people who have tested positive once and are being tested for a second time — the positivity rate increased from 9.14% to 9.91%, according to the report.

And in South Florida, the percent positivity increased in Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and Monroe counties. It saw a decrease in Broward.

Here’s what to know:

Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in South Florida

▪ Miami-Dade County reported 1,999 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 17 new deaths, according to Florida’s Department of Health. The county has a total of 243,050 confirmed cases and 3,913 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases increased from 8.04% to 8.55%. The 14-day percent positivity average was 8.50%, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard.

▪ Broward County reported 905 additional confirmed cases and seven new deaths. The county now has a known total of 113,634 cases and 1,701 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 7.61% to 7.35%.

▪ Palm Beach County saw 531 additional confirmed cases and one new death. The county now has 68,912 confirmed cases and 1,725 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases increased from 6.46% to 6.68%.

▪ Monroe County confirmed 24 additional cases and no new deaths. The county has a known total of 3,569 cases and 28 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases increased from 8.24% to 8.42.%

COVID-19 hospitalizations in Florida

One of the tools that officials rely on to determine whether the coronavirus situation is improving in the state is hospitalization data. Unlike testing, which might be limited or takes days to report results, hospitalizations can help give officials a real-time snapshot of how many people are severely ill with COVID-19.

The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration reports the number of patients hospitalized statewide with a “primary diagnosis of COVID.” The data, which is updated at least every hour, does not distinguish between the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital intensive care units and those in acute-care beds, which require less attention from nurses.

Previously, the state was providing only the total number of hospitalizations in its statewide and county-level data. Miami-Dade was an exception, with hospitals self-reporting a number of key metrics, including hospitalizations, to the county, which has made this data public for several months.

As of 3:23 p.m. Sunday, there were 4,400 COVID-19 patients admitted into hospitals throughout the state, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration dashboard. This is a big jump from what the state was reporting last month though it’s still less than early August, when more than 5,000 COVID-19 patients were admitted into hospitals throughout the state.

Of Sunday’s hospitalizations, 784 were in Miami-Dade, 436 in Broward, 275 in Palm Beach and four in Monroe, according to the agency.

Florida’s current hospitalization data does not always match the hospitalization data reported in Miami-Dade’s “New Normal” dashboard. Officials say this could be for a number of reasons, including the frequency of daily updates.

On Sunday, Miami-Dade hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications increased from 846 to 857, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard. According to Sunday’s data, 95 people were discharged and 83 people were admitted.

The state has had a total of 56,457 Florida residents hospitalized for COVID-19-related complications, according to Florida’s COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard.

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