COVID: Florida reports 197,768 cases and 1,192 deaths in a week, still on list where virus spreads fastest – Palm Beach Post

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White House officials say hopefully we will get to where COVID-19 is acceptable and "it doesn't disrupt our capability to function in society in a relatively normal way." (Jan. 26)

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From No. 37 ... to No. 37.

Florida spent a nerve-wracking six weeks on a Top 10 list of states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest. From late December to mid-January, the state saw a spike in COVID-19 cases brought on by the more infectious, but less severe omicron variant. Last week the state was barely in the Top 40.

How are we doing this week?

Florida reported far fewer coronavirus cases in the week ending Sunday, adding 197,768 new cases. That's down 30% from the previous week's tally of 282,520 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Florida ranked 37th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.

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In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States decreased 30.3% from the week before, with 3,451,287 cases reported. With 6.45% of the country's population, Florida had 5.73% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 10 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

Here's a snapshot of the previous seven weeks (click on the hyperlinks to read those COVID-19 reports):

In the week ending Jan. 23, Florida ranked No. 37 in the nation when the state department of health added 282,520 cases. That figure was down 30.9% from the previous week's tally.

In the week ending Jan. 16, Florida was knocked out of the Top 10 list, ranking at No. 11, and reporting 408,841 cases, a 3.4% dip from the week before.

In the week ending Jan. 9, Florida ranked fifth, reporting 423,150 cases, a 40% rise from the week before.

In the week ending Jan. 2, the state ranked fourth when Florida Department of Health reported 302,179 cases, a 142% rise from the week before.

In the week ending Dec. 26, the state ranked ninth, reporting 124,865 cases, a 332.9% rise from the week before that.

In the week ending Dec. 19, the state had reported 28,841 cases of the virus that causes COVID-19, a 142% increase from mid-December.

It should be noted that while Florida ranks 37 on a list where coronavirus spreads the fastest and health officials have said COVID cases are falling here, the state still is reporting more than 100,000 new cases a week, compared with almost 29,000 cases in the week ending Dec. 19.

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Palm Beach County reported 8,711 cases and 51 deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 15,075 cases and 27 deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 350,714 cases and 4,407 deaths.

Martin County reported 1,097 cases and nine deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 1,358 cases and eight deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 29,796 cases and 541 deaths.

Okeechobee County reported 403 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 588 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 10,157 cases and 164 deaths.

Across Florida, cases fell in 58 counties, with the best declines in Miami-Dade County, with 23,019 cases from 46,959 a week earlier; in Broward County, with 11,917 cases from 23,063; and in Palm Beach County, with 8,711 cases from 15,075.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Florida ranked 19th among states in share of people receiving at least one shot, with 77.2% of its residents at least partially vaccinated. The national rate is 75.3%, a USA TODAY analysis of CDC data shows. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are the most used in the United States, require two doses administered a few weeks apart.

In the week ending Sunday, Florida reported administering another 254,074 vaccine doses, including 70,765 first doses. In the previous week, the state administered 390,947 vaccine doses, including 226,645 first doses. In all, Florida reported it has administered 35,340,821 total doses.

Within Florida, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in:

Taylor County with 2,717 cases per 100,000 per week

Madison County with 2,487 cases

Baker County with 1,862 cases

The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Is it the flu, a cold, or the omicron variant? How to know, and when to get tested for COVID

Adding the most new cases overall were:

Miami-Dade Countywith 23,019 cases

Hillsborough Countywith 13,524 cases

Orange Countywith 12,455 cases

Weekly case counts rose in nine counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Taylor, Franklin and Madison counties.

In Florida, 1,192 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday, Jan. 30. In the week before that, 605 people were reported dead.Johns Hopkins University data shows64,955 people have died from the disease since the pandemic began. In the U.S., 884,260 people have died.

A total of 5,522,206 people in Florida have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States, 74,333,001 people have tested positive.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Jan. 30.

Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

Last week: 12,792

The week before that: 14,710

Four weeks ago: 10,854

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

Last week: 170,411

The week before that: 183,931

Four weeks ago: 147,900

Hospitals in 13 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 15 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 18 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

Vaccination is the best way to protect yourself and reduce the impact of COVID in your communities.

The same precautions still apply:

wash your hands

social distance

wash your hands frequently or use hand sanitizer to prevent the spread of germs

avoid crowds in which you are unsure of vaccination status

Please consider subscribing to a USA TODAY Network-Florida newspaper atoffers.usatodaynetwork.com/network-regional-florida.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka atmstucka@gannett.com. Follow Mike on Twitter at @mikestucka.

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COVID: Florida reports 197,768 cases and 1,192 deaths in a week, still on list where virus spreads fastest - Palm Beach Post