Mecklenburg County adds 300 COVID-19 cases, one death Friday

Mecklenburg County has seen a total of 18,703 coronavirus cases, the state Department of Health and Human Services reported Friday morning. The number is cumulative since mid-March and includes 300 new cases, according to state health data.

One additional person with COVID-19 died locally, raising the total deaths to 187, Mecklenburg health officials said.

Over the past seven days, Mecklenburg had an average of about 292 new cases daily, according to state health data. Coronavirus hospitalization and case totals continue to rise in the county, a trend that has remained largely the same over the past month.

Mecklenburg County Manager Dena Diorio told elected officials Friday that four people who work at county pools have tested positive for COVID-19. In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, officials from Charlotte and surrounding towns approved a late-night alcohol sales ban that went into effect Thursday.

Statewide, DHHS reported 2,102 new cases Friday, for a total of 108,995, and 20 more deaths, for a total of 1,746.

Mecklenburg COVID-19 update

As of July 22 — the last date demographic data was publicly available — county coronavirus data show:

▪ During the past week, an average of 197 individuals with laboratory confirmed COVID-19 infections were hospitalized at acute care facilities in Mecklenburg County. Health officials say this trend represents a slight increase over the past two weeks. However, the number of people needing hospital-level care with COVID-19 has been steadily increasing locally since May.

▪An average of 10.9% of individuals who were tested were positive for COVID-19 during the past week. Mecklenburg County Public Health says this represents a stable trend over the last 14 days. The data only include tests conducted by Atrium Health, Novant Health and CVS Health.

▪ Most people — about 60% of more than 18,000 cases — were adults under the age of 40. People older than 60 account for less than 12% of all cases reported but about 85% of all deaths.

▪ After symptoms of coronavirus subside, a person diagnosed may be “released” from isolation under CDC guidelines. In Mecklenburg, roughly 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.

▪ More than half of the people who have died from COVID-19 locally were connected to active outbreaks in long-term care facilities or nursing homes. Still, three of the 186 deaths recorded as of July 22 were among people who had no known underlying conditions. Twenty-four of the people who died were between the ages of 40 to 59, and three people were under the age of 40.