Mecklenburg adds 60 new coronavirus cases as county begins 30-day testing plan
Mecklenburg County has seen a total of 2,134 coronavirus cases, according to state health data Monday morning. The number is cumulative since the county’s first case was reported in mid-March.
Health officials say 63 people with COVID-19 have died locally, as of late Sunday.
The county added 60 new cases from the previous day, the state Department of Health and Human Services reported. About two-thirds of Mecklenburg County residents who tested positive for the virus have since been released from isolation, the county has said.
Mecklenburg — which has a different reporting window and, unlike the state, reports only cases among county residents — had reported 2,129 cases Monday afternoon.
Statewide, DHHS reported 281 new cases Monday, for a total of 15,045 across 99 counties, and 3 more deaths, for a total of 550.
Health officials say the totals may only be a snapshot because many people with COVID-19 symptoms haven’t been tested.
Last week, County Health Director Gibbie Harris said the county will ramp up coronavirus testing and broaden the criteria for who is eligible to be tested. The county is planning on testing at least 8% of the local population for COVID-19 — an increase from the 3% of Mecklenburg residents who have been tested so far.
Mecklenburg COVID-19 update
As of May 6 — the last date demographic data was available — county coronavirus data show:
▪ An average of about 57 people with lab-confirmed coronavirus infections were hospitalized at acute-care facilities in the past week. Those numbers reflect a decrease over the past two weeks, according to Mecklenburg health officials.
▪ An average of 7.5% of people who were tested were positive, showing a “slight” decrease over the last 14 days, health officials say.
▪ About 3 in 4 people diagnosed with COVID-19 locally were adults ages 20 to 59 years old.
▪ About 1 in 6 people diagnosed were hospitalized due to their illness. People age 60 or older were four times as likely to need hospital care compared to younger people with coronavirus.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhy don't we know how many tests have been done in Mecklenburg County?
Mecklenburg County Health Department collects data from local hospitals on the number of tests administered. County officials have said they do not know how many tests have been done outside of hospitals.
Non-hospital test centers and private labs report the number of tests and outcomes directly to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. The state health department reports on its website a daily count of the number of tests performed across North Carolina. A county-by-county breakdown of the number of tests has not been provided publicly.
This story was originally published May 11, 2020 at 11:13 AM.
