Over 1,200 new Florida coronavirus cases reported in Friday's update; 49 additional deaths
TAMPA, Fla. - The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 1,212 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 54,497.
The number of deaths has reached 2,364, an increase of 45 since Wednesday's update. Locally, Hillsborough reported three new deaths, Pinellas reported two, while Manatee and Highlands each noted one more.
Of the 54,497 cases, 53,114 are Florida residents while 1,383 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.
Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:
Hillsborough: 2,069
Pinellas: 1,238
Sarasota: 622
Manatee: 1,022
Sumter: 253
Polk: 977
Citrus: 120
Hernando: 113
Pasco: 377
Highlands: 120
DeSoto: 171
Hardee: 91
The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients or those currently hospitalized. As of Friday, 9,982 people had been hospitalized for treatment at some point.
A total of 984,160 people have been tested in the state as of Friday -- about 4.6% of the state's population -- according to the Florida Department of Health.
LINK: County-by-county Florida coronavirus cases and ZIP code map
Florida resident cases in orange; Florida resident deaths in gray. Source: Fla. Dept. of Health.
After two peaks in early and mid-April, the state’s curve has generally flattened over the last few weeks. In the last 30 days, the state has averaged just under 700 new cases per day. That’s down to a level that the health care system can handle, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The new cases Friday mark the largest single-day number reported during the last month.
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 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:
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