Over 9,700 new Florida coronavirus cases reported Wednesday; 139 new deaths

TAMPA, Fla. - The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 9,785 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 379,619.

The number of Florida resident deaths has reached 5,345, an increase of 139 since Tuesday's update. Another 114 non-Floridians have died in the state. Locally, Hillsborough County reported 16 new deaths, Polk reported 14, Pinellas reported eight, Hernando reported two, while Citrus, Pasco, and Sarasota each reported one. Sumter had one death removed from its total.

Of the 379,619 cases, 374,920 are Florida residents while 4,699 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.

Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:

• Hillsborough: 24,891
• Pinellas: 14,191
• Sarasota: 4,567
• Manatee: 7,078
• Sumter: 881
• Polk: 10,309
• Citrus: 911
• Hernando: 1,273
• Pasco: 5,260
• Highlands: 876
• DeSoto: 1,112
• Hardee: 726

Florida resident cases in orange; Florida resident deaths in gray. Source: Fla. Dept. of Health.

The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients. As of Wednesday, 9,542 Floridians were currently hospitalized for a primary diagnosis of COVID-19; in total, 22,243 have been hospitalized for treatment at some point.

A total of 3,158,741 people have been tested in the state as of Wednesday -- about 14.7% 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. Dept. of Health

Today's new case number represents the 50th straight day with new cases near or over 1,000 per day. The rate of positive new tests has increased during that time period. It was at 10.55% on Tuesday, the most recent date available.

As the number of new cases has trended up over the last few weeks, the number of deaths has also begun to reflect the same upward trend -- though "significant delays" in data reporting, as the state says, make interpreting short-term trends from that statistic less reliable.

The 139 new deaths reported Wednesday was the second-largest number of daily new deaths in the last several months. The most was 156 deaths added July 16.

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

Source: Fla. Dept. of Health

Experts say the current spike is partly due to more tests being given, but also a result of reopening the state.

Gov. Ron DeSantis says the recent case increases are largely due to testing of "high-risk" individuals like farmworkers in the state's rural counties, prisoners, and residents of long-term care facilities, though he has more recently noted the "erosion" in social distancing, especially among the younger demographics in social setting. That prompted him to order all bars to cease serving alcohol.

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. 

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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