Mecklenburg County coronavirus cases at 993, with 16 deaths

Mecklenburg County’s coronavirus case count rose to 993 by Tuesday, a steady uptick that health officials said could overwhelm the local healthcare system and might not peak until June.

The county also reported 16 deaths, one more than on Monday, along with the increase of 18 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease causesd by the novel coronavirus.

“We’re seeing some progress toward flattening the curve, but we must continue physical and social distancing if we are to maintain flattening of the curve,” public health Director Gibbie Harris told county commissioners Tuesday.

Statewide, 5,024 cases and 108 deaths have been reported, the Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday. Raleigh’s News & Observer said the 19 new N.C. fatalities reported Monday were the most on any single day.

Mecklenburg’s public health department expects patients will overwhelm the county health care system in early to mid-May, even with increased social distancing, Harris said.

Current distancing compliance puts peak demand for hospital beds on June 8, the county projects.

The county has 255 ICU beds available, Harris said, but would need 1,143 beds by June 8. It would also needs more than double the number of ventilators now available, she said.

Mecklenburg County might build a new field hospital at the Charlotte Convention Center in response to the coronavirus outbreak, county manager Dena Diorio said Tuesday. Other sites are also being evaluated, Diorio later clarified.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency would cover the costs of the hospital, with no local dollars appropriated, if it is built, Diorio told county commissioners.

“We expect to have a final decision in the next day or so” about moving forward, she said.

Early this month the Charlotte region’s two biggest hospital systems, Atrium Health and Novant Health, asked for the county’s financial support to build a 600-bed field hospital to handle an expanded surge of coronavirus patients.

Of the 12 Mecklenburg deaths recorded through Sunday, all were 60 years or older with underlying health conditions. Two-thirds of them were male and half were black, county officials said.

Hospitalizations rise

The state’s Department of Health and Human Services reported Tuesday that 418 people are hospitalized as they battle COVID-19. That’s an increase of 105 over Monday’s total.

DHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen said in a Tuesday afternoon news conference that the increase in hospitalizations is likely a combination of an increased severity in cases and increased reporting from hospitals.

Also Tuesday, Iredell County recorded its second death associated with COVID-19. The individual had underlying health conditions, the county said, but offered no further details. Burke County reported its fourth death, of a woman in her 90s.

Wake Forest Baptist Health said Monday it will begin a year-long random sample of 1,000 patients to look for coronavirus antibodies, to get a sense of how widespread the virus is and was in North Carolina.

The project will help fill a data gap that has existed since the beginning of the pandemic, Wake Forest Baptist says. The health system is working with Atrium Health as well as Oracle, Scanwell Health and Javara.

Help for renters, tiny businesses

On Monday night, Charlotte City Council members approved plans to spend a portion of $5.7 million in federal stimulus money to help residents who are struggling to pay their rent, mortgage or utility payments.

The money comes from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which Congress passed in response to the pandemic. Part of the aid package goes to housing programs.

City Council also approved a $1 million economic relief package to support micro-businesses, defined as those with five or fewer employees. Charlotte’s smallest businesses will soon be able to apply for loans of up to $10,000 to help them cope with a flailing local economy.

This story was originally published April 14, 2020 at 11:43 AM.