New COVID-19 cases in NC at lowest level in two weeks. State attractions reopening.
North Carolina added 716 new lab-confirmed coronavirus cases Tuesday, the lowest number of new cases recorded in a day since August 17.
The state Department of Health and Human Services reported that 178,635 people in the state have tested positive for the coronavirus since March. The official total is likely an undercount because tests were rationed early in the pandemic.
DHHS estimates that 156,652 people are presumed recovered. The estimate is based on test dates and whether or not people were hospitalized.
DHHS reported 12 more COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total to 2,909.
On its website, DHHS said it has had problems since Friday, Sept. 4, with its hospitalization data, and that it is likely that there were more than 827 patients with COVID-19 hospitalized on Monday, as its dashboard shows. Eighty percent of the state’s 112 hospitals reported their numbers. On Sunday, the state counted 756 people with COVID-19 in the hospital, with 78% of hospitals reporting.
Lab-confirmed cases, daily tests and hospitalizations have all trended down in the past week.
DHHS advises that all its data, including hospitalizations, is preliminary and subject to revision.
The DHHS data dashboard says 6.2% of Sunday’s coronavirus tests were positive, higher than the 5% or lower health officials want.
The positivity percentages in individual counties now have added importance because they will determine how often nursing homes must test their staff members. Under federal rules, nursing homes in counties with positivity percentages between 5% and 10% must test all staff members once a week, The News & Observer reported.
Nursing homes in counties with positivity percentages above 10% must test all staff twice a week. Nursing homes in counties with positivity percentages below 5% must test all staff once a month.
Reopening this week
Museums, aquariums, playgrounds and fitness centers were allowed to open last Friday with prescribed safety measures and occupancy limits as part of Gov. Roy Cooper’s announced Phase 2.5 of loosened pandemic restrictions.
The NC Museum of Art is reopening its galleries Wednesday, Sept. 9. The NC Museum of History is opening Thursday, Sept. 10. The NC Museum of Natural Sciences is opening Tuesday, Sept. 22, and will require free, timed tickets for entry.
The NC Aquariums at Pine Knoll Shores, Fort Fisher, and Roanoke Island are reopening Monday, Sept. 14. Visitors must obtain tickets available online in advance, according to a news release.
Most YMCA of the Triangle branches will open Wednesday, Sept. 9, but lobby sitting rooms, showers and locker rooms will be closed, and some other services will not be available. Opening dates for Chatham YMCA, Hope Valley Farms YMCA, Ingram Family YMCA, and YMCA at American Tobacco have not been determined, according to the website.
This story was originally published September 8, 2020 at 1:26 PM.