More than 1,200 new Florida coronavirus cases reported Saturday; fourth day of large increase
TAMPA, Fla. - The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 1,270 since yesterday morning as the virus spreads and as more people are tested across the state. The total number of cases in Florida is now 62,758.
The number of deaths has reached 2,688, an increase of 28 since Friday's update.
Of the 62,758 cases, 61,246 are Florida residents while 1,512 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.
Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:
Hillsborough: 2,643
Pinellas: 1,532
Sarasota: 669
Manatee: 1,177
Sumter: 261
Polk: 1,145
Citrus: 125
Hernando: 122
Pasco: 419
Highlands: 14
DeSoto: 258
Hardee: 140
The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients or those currently hospitalized. As of Saturday, 10,891 people had been hospitalized for treatment at some point.
A total of 1,175,106 people have been tested in the state as of Saturday -- about 5.3% of the state's population -- according to the Florida Department of Health.
LINK: County-by-county Florida coronavirus cases and ZIP code map
The number of new cases reported Wednesday appeared to reflect the largest single-day increase in the last month, and one of the largest since the epidemic began -- the second day in a row with such an increase. Saturdays increase was nearly as high, marking four straight days of a much higher-than-average increase.
Prior to this spike, the state had averaged just over 700 new cases per day in the last 30 days. That’s down to a level that the health care system can handle, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis. And while the number of new cases has trended up over the last few weeks, the number of deaths has appeared to trend down, though delays in data reporting make interpreting trends from that statistic less reliable.
RELATED: Florida 'phase two' begins today, despite increase in COVID-19 infection rate
As Florida continues taking steps to ease restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, health experts say new cases and more deaths are expected.
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. The number of non-Florida residents who have died from the coronavirus while in the state is not reported.
If you feel sick:
The Florida Department of Health has 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:
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