Reported coronavirus cases, hospitalizations in NC show slight decrease
With Gov. Roy Cooper not ready to move North Carolina into Phase Three and further ease coronavirus restrictions, even more scrutiny will be placed on COVID-19 data in the next three weeks.
Cooper announced Wednesday that he was extending Phase Two of the state’s reopening until July 17 in an attempt to slow the spread of the virus. He also announced that face coverings in public must be worn, issuing a mandatory order that goes into effect Friday at 5 p.m.
“North Carolina has been careful in lifting COVID-19 restrictions,” Cooper said in a press conference Wednesday. “It’s because public health experts warn that removing restrictions too fast or all at once can cause a dangerous spike in the virus that would overwhelm our medical system. ... The numbers we see are a stark warning and we must pay attention.”
Cooper and Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the state’s Department of Health and Human Services, pointed to the strain COVID-19 has placed on the health care system — 915 people were in North Carolina hospitals dealing with coronavirus issues on Tuesday, a one-day high since the pandemic began, and 906 on Wednesday.
On Thursday, DHHS reported slight decreases both in the number of people currently hospitalized — there were 891 — and new confirmed cases of coronavirus.
There were 1,009 new cases reported Thursday after 1,721 cases on Wednesday, which was the second-highest total during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The reported death toll from COVID-19 was 1,284 people on Thursday, with an additional 13 deaths in the reporting period.
The DHHS reported Thursday that 19,993 tests were completed, and reported the percent of positive tests at 9%.
The number hasn’t been below 8% since May 26 and Cohen aid the state would like to have that percentage at 5%.
“This metric helps us understand that our increase in cases is not just due to more testing,” Cohen said Wednesday. “It indicates that the virus is still very prevalent in our state.”
Widespread wearing of masks
North Carolina has had 57,183 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to the DHHS data.
DHHS reported Thursday that 22% of in-patient hospital beds and 23% of ICU beds were available, with 90% of the hospitals reporting.
“Our hospitals still have capacity to meet increased demands if more people become seriously ill, which is good,” Cohen said Wednesday. “But the fact that this metric has continued to climb for more than a month is concerning. If this upward trend continues or worse accelerates we could face capacity challenge within our health system.”
Cooper and Cohen, along with various state and national health officials, believe more widespread wearing of face coverings will be effective against the virus spread, if perhaps hard to enforce.
Some municipalities in the state including Raleigh and Knightdale in Wake County, had issued requirements on face coverings in public before Cooper’s announcement on Wednesday.
In an NPR story this week on the effectiveness of masks in slowing the virus transmission, Jeffrey Shaman, an epidemiologist at Columbia University, was quoted as saying, “I personally think that face masks are a key component of the non-pharmaceutical arsenal we have to combat COVID-19.”
Cooper said Wednesday a slower, more cautious approach to easing restrictions was like a “dimmer switch rather than an on-off switch.” He noted there has been evidence of increased community spread of COVID-19 in the state. Daily case counts have gone up. The percent of tests returned positive has stayed high.”
This story was originally published June 25, 2020 at 12:44 PM with the headline "Reported coronavirus cases, hospitalizations in NC show slight decrease."
