NC reports lowest number of new COVID-19 cases since August. But testing was also down.
Only 610 new cases of the novel coronavirus were reported by North Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services on Sunday, around one-fourth of the cases reported Saturday. It’s the lowest one-day number of new cases reported since mid August.
The number of tests conducted Saturday also decreased significantly, with 20,964 tests, compared to Friday’s more than 35,000 tests, according to the department’s dashboard. The current rate of positive tests is at 6.6%. North Carolina’s target percent positive rate is 5%, The News & Observer previously reported.
North Carolina reopened under Phase 3 of Gov. Roy Cooper’s coronavirus reopening plan on Friday at 5 p.m., which allows bars to reopen outdoors only and at a limited capacity. Also on the list of businesses that were finally green-lighted to reopen: movie theaters, clubs and outdoor amusement parks.
It could take two weeks before new cases correlated with reopening are seen in the state’s numbers, however.
One day after Cooper announced that the state would move to Phase 3, North Carolina had its largest increase in cases in two months, with 2,227 cases reported Oct. 1, according to the state health department.
It was the second highest count of new cases reported since the beginning of the pandemic. The highest number North Carolina saw was on July 30, when the state reported 2,344 new cases.
As of Oct. 3, more than 900 coronavirus hospitalizations were documented, with 91% of hospitals reporting. Hospitalizations have trended downward since early last week.
Nearly 400 patients suspected to have the virus were admitted to the hospital Saturday, however, the highest number since Sept. 11, according to state data.
