Reported coronavirus cases rise by more than 1,000 after day of smaller increase
North Carolina added more than 1,000 cases to its coronavirus total Tuesday, for the second day of smaller increases compared to jumps seen in recent weeks.
The state Department of Health and Human Services reported 137,895 confirmed cases of COVID-19, up 1,051 from Monday’s total. The state’s reported death toll from the pandemic reached 2,204, climbing by 32 Tuesday.
The updated totals came after a second day of lengthy delays by the NC DHHS in releasing its data. The COVID-19 dashboard maintained by state DHHS is normally updated daily with updated statewide coronavirus data around noon. Tuesday’s update came more than three hours late and drew impatient tweets from people monitoring the pandemic’s spread.
DHHS spokeswoman Kelly Haight Connor said in an email the delay came Tuesday because of additional quality checks, and on Monday because one of the commercial labs was late submitting its full testing data file.
She added that new case numbers are typically lower on Mondays and “this data should be viewed over multiple days in order to accommodate for single day fluctuations and reporting anomalies.”
North Carolina has had daily reported case increases over 1,500 in recent weeks, and the increases reached more than 2,000 on several days in late July.
The state reported more than 15,000 COVID-19 tests conducted since Monday’s update, bringing the total to more than 2.01 million. The rate of positive results rose to 6 percent, one percentage point higher than Monday’s report.
Planning for coronavirus vaccine distribution in NC
In remarks to a joint legislative committee Tuesday, DHHS Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen said the 5 percent positive test rate from Monday is encouraging.
But North Carolina is still seeing more than 100 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents, placing the state among the top third in the country.
“The progress we’ve made so far is fragile,” she said Tuesday.
Cohen also stressed the state’s need to start planning for distributing COVID-19 vaccines in 2021.
Reported coronavirus hospitalizations rose slightly Tuesday to 1,122 statewide, up by 11 patients since Monday. DHHS reported 359 suspected COVID-19 patients were admitted to state hospitals since Monday’s report.
A majority of deaths from COVID-19 have struck people older than 75, though DHHS now reports the virus has been fatal for three people between the ages of 18 and 24 with one younger victim.
State health officials also reported the first dog has tested positive for coronavirus in North Carolina. The dog’s family brought it to the NC State Veterinary Hospital on Aug. 3, where the was treated for respiratory distress. The dog later died and a necropsy showed the virus was present.
“Based on the information available, the risk of animals spreading the virus to people is considered to be low,” Dr. Carl Williams, state public health veterinarian, said in a press release.
This story was originally published August 11, 2020 at 4:35 PM.