NC’s percentage of positive coronavirus cases stays high, hospitalizations rise again
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reported 1,605 new COVID-19 cases across the state Sunday, bringing the total to 62,142.
The agency reported 1,322 people have died, up four from a day earlier.
The number of those reported in the state hospitalized for COVID-19 increased by two Sunday to 890. Reporting hospitals fell 12 percentage points Sunday to 78%.
The number of completed COVID-19 tests increased by 16,774 Sunday to 871,905.
The percentage of positive cases from daily testing was at 10% Sunday. Dr, Mandy Cohen, secretary of the NC Department of Health and Human Services, has said the state wants that number to be closer to 5%.
State public health officials track coronavirus spread through metrics that include hospitalizations, the number of new cases, and the percentage of people who tested positive.
Hospitalizations across the state continue to increase. In the week that ended June 21, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 symptoms ranged between 797 and 871 In the week that ended Sunday, the numbers ranged from 834 to a peak of 915 on Tuesday.
The numbers of new reported cases also continued to climb in the Triangle and in the Charlotte area.
As of Sunday afternoon:
▪ In Mecklenburg County, cases increased to 10,287. The county had 145 deaths.
▪ Wake County had 4,675 cases. Forty-six people have died in Wake.
▪ Durham County had 3,521 cases. Sixty-one people had died.
▪ Orange County’s cases increased by to 616 and 41 people had died in the county.
This story was originally published June 28, 2020 at 12:44 PM with the headline "NC’s percentage of positive coronavirus cases stays high, hospitalizations rise again."
