New cases in Mecklenburg fall below week’s average, NC hospitalizations rise

State health officials reported 270 new coronavirus cases in Mecklenburg County on Wednesday. That’s one of the lowest new daily caseloads seen in the county in recent days.

The update brings the cumulative total of cases in Mecklenburg to 15,950 since mid-March. The average number of new cases reported daily over the last week is 352. The week prior, the average was 279.

Because day-to-day case counts will vary, health experts say weekly or biweekly averages, as well as the positivity rate of tests, will help gauge the spread of COVID-19.

County health data this week showed hospitalizations in Mecklenburg have been steadily increasing each week for the past 10 weeks. The percent of positive tests has been stable, hovering around 11% in recent weeks.

In Mecklenburg, a total of 168 people have died related to the virus, with the latest fatalities reported on Sunday.

The percentage of positive tests across the North Carolina was 8% on Wednesday, dropping two points since the latest update.

The Department of Health and Human Services reported 1,142 people were hospitalized in North Carolina, an increase of 33 since Tuesday.

North Carolina saw 1,782 new cases Wednesday, DHHS reported. In total there have been 91,266 cases statewide.

Health officials reported 16 new deaths, bringing the death toll in the state to 1,568.

Noth Carolina will not move into its third phase of reopening, Gov. Roy Cooper announced Tuesday, noting the state’s number of cases and hospitalizations are “troubling” and “could jump higher in the blink of an eye.”

“Our virus trends are not spiking like some other states,” Cooper said Tuesday. “We have hospital capacity and our percent positive is still high, but it’s steady.”

Mecklenburg COVID-19 update

As of July 12 — the last date demographic data was publicly available — county coronavirus data show:

▪ During the past week, an average of 175 individuals with laboratory confirmed COVID-19 infections were hospitalized at acute care facilities in Mecklenburg County. This represents an increase over the last 14 days.

▪An average of 11.5% of individuals who were tested were positive for COVID-19 during the past week. Mecklenburg County Public Health says this represents a “fairly stable trend” over the last 14 days. These data only include tests conducted by Atrium Health, Novant Health and CVS Health.

▪ Most people — about three in four out of nearly 14,500 cases — were adults ages 20 to 59 years old.

▪ After symptoms of coronavirus subside, a person diagnosed may be “released” from isolation under CDC guidelines. In Mecklenburg, nearly half of the people who tested positive have met the criteria to end isolation, according to local health officials.

▪ About 1 in 20 people diagnosed were hospitalized due to their illness. People age 60 or older were more likely to need hospital care compared to younger people with coronavirus.

▪ The majority of people who have died from COVID-19 locally were connected to “active outbreaks” in long-term care facilities or nursing homes. Still, two of the 168 deaths recorded as of July 12 were among people who had no known underlying conditions. Twenty-two of the people who died were between the ages of 40 to 59, and one person was under the age of 40.