NC’s COVID-19 death toll hits 14,000 as delta surge continues
North Carolina reported its 14,000th death from COVID-19 on Thursday, along with 7,020 new COVID-19 cases and 3,083 hospitalizations.
The rapid spread is due to the delta variant, a mutation of the coronavirus that’s more than three times contagious as the original strain. Delta accounts for over 86% of sequenced virus in North Carolina, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The new cases and hospitalizations were the most since late January, when the state was just coming down from the pandemic’s peak over the winter. The highest number of cases reported in a day was 11,581 on Jan. 9, and hospitalizations due to the virus peaked at 3,990 on Jan. 14.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reported 53 deaths on Thursday, bringing the total number of North Carolinians who have died due to the virus to 14,005.
DHHS did not specify the dates of death for those reported on Thursday.
Among tests reported Tuesday, the latest data available, 12.3% returned positive. Over the last week of available data, 12.2% have returned positive per day. State health officials have said they want that rate at 5% or lower.
Deaths are increasing and trending younger
Since delta has become the dominant strain of COVID in North Carolina, more deaths are being reported.
From June to August, more people in the state have died each month due to the virus.
Just 19 days into August, 274 people have died. That’s more than in all of June, when 153 people died, and all of July, when 202 died.
And compared to when deaths were peaking in January, a larger portion are in a younger age range, DHHS data shows.
From the week of July 4 to the week of Aug. 1, 164 deaths were among those 65 and older.
For those 50 to 64, 69 died in that time frame.
In January, people in their 50s and early 60s made up a much smaller portion.
Among that age group, 332 died compared to 2,076 age 65 and older.
Those age 25 to 49 made up about the same share of deaths reported from January to the summer.
The average age of hospitalization is decreasing as well.
About a week ago, DHHS reported that the average age is now 44 compared to 61 in January.
Cooper continues to urge vaccination
At a press conference on Wednesday, DHHS Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen said unvaccinated people are 400% more likely to contract COVID-19, The News & Observer reported.
In a report earlier this month, DHHS officials said over 90% of hospitalizations are among those unvaccinated and almost all patients treated in intensive care units, which make up a quarter of all statewide hospitalizations, have yet to receive a shot.
As of Thursday, 48% of all North Carolinians and 56% of those eligible, ages 12 and up, are fully vaccinated.
Among those 65 and older, 85% are fully vaccinated.
Due to the delta surge primarily among those unvaccinated, new cases have increased nearly sixfold and hospitalizations have quadrupled over the last month.
ICU capacity is increasingly limited in the Triangle. UNC Health stopped taking transfers of COVID-19 patients from other hospitals as of last week, and Duke Health had patients on waiting lists, The N&O reported.
“Our hospitals are strained and many have limited capacity already,” Cohen said at the press conference. “This is exactly the situation we’ve been working to avoid.”
At the press conference, Gov. Roy Cooper urged those who haven’t to get vaccinated, so the state can get the pandemic back under control.
“This not where we want to be, but we have a sure way out: vaccines,” Cooper said.
This story was originally published August 19, 2021 at 12:42 PM with the headline "NC’s COVID-19 death toll hits 14,000 as delta surge continues."