5,592 new Florida coronavirus cases reported Friday; 72 new deaths

Experts expect COVID case surge across Florida

Get ready for round three. COVID-19 cases are steadily on the rise. Many medical experts say another surge is on the way.

TAMPA, Fla. - The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 5,592 Friday. According to the state's daily update, the total number of cases in Florida is now 800,216.

The number of Florida resident deaths has reached 16,720, an increase of 72 since Thursday's update. In addition, a total of 207 non-Floridians have died in the state.

Locally, Hillsborough County reported 22 new deaths, Polk reported five, Sarasota reported four, Pinellas reported two, while Citrus and Pasco each reported one.

Of the 800,216 cases, 789,714 are Florida residents while 10,502 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.

Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:

Hillsborough: 48,148
Pinellas: 25,921
Sarasota: 9,706
Manatee: 13,403
Sumter: 2,928
Polk: 23,088
Citrus: 3,260
Hernando: 3,757
Pasco: 10,923
Highlands: 2,671
DeSoto: 1,674
Hardee: 1,614

Florida new resident cases in orange; new resident deaths in gray. Note: Deaths usually appear to be trending down because of the delay in confirming the last few days of data. Source: Fla. Dept. of Health.

The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients. As of Friday, 2,350 Floridians were currently hospitalized for a primary diagnosis of COVID-19; in total, 49,185 have been hospitalized for treatment at some point.

A total of 6,152,765 residents have been tested in the state as of Friday -- about 29.1% of the state's population -- according to the Florida Department of Health.

LINK: County-by-county Florida coronavirus cases and ZIP code map

Source: Fla. Department of Health

The number of new cases had generally been trending down in September, mirroring the number of tests being given. But it has begun to increase again. The 5,592 new cases reported Friday was the highest since August 15.

The rate of positive new tests has declined from its summertime peak, remaining below 10% for two months. It was at 5.89% on Thursday, the most recent date available.

After peaking in July, the number of deaths also began a downward trend in August that continued through September -- though "significant delays" in data reporting, as the state says, make interpreting short-term trends from that statistic less reliable.

The state announced last week that it was taking a closer look at those delays and how deaths are tallied, even as Florida moved past New Jersey with the fourth-highest number of deaths in the country.

COVID UPDATES: Download the free FOX 13 News app for ongoing coronavirus coverage and live updates

Source: Fla. Department of Health

PDF: DOH's full county-by-county COVID-19 case report

Editor's note: The number of new cases and deaths reported each day does not necessarily reflect the day that the case was confirmed. The state says some private testing labs dump large batches of test results which include cases from previous days. Stats for today and previous days will likely change in the future as the state reviews more cases and updates retroactive data.

The state's number of deaths represents permanent Florida residents who have died from COVID-19.

MAP: Florida coronavirus cases by county

Doctor debunks mask myths

Dr. Joette Giovinco goes over some of the more prevalent myths about masks and COVID-19.

If you feel sick:

The Florida Department of Health has opened a COVID-19 Call Center at 1-866-779-6121. Agents will answer questions around the clock. Questions may also be emailed to covid-19@flhealth.gov. Email responses will be sent during call center hours.

LINK: Florida's COVID-19 website

CORONAVIRUS IN FLORIDA: What you need to know

AROUND THE WORLD: CoronavirusNOW.com

Map of known COVID-19 cases:

MOBILE APP USERS: Click here for map