Manatee County records 189 new COVID-19 cases as Florida suffers another deadly day

It was another deadly day for the state, as Manatee County also loses another resident to COVID-19, according to the Florida Department of Health on Saturday.

The state added 135 new deaths, bringing the death toll to 5,777. And with another 12,199 new cases, the total number of cases in Florida climbed to 414,511.

Manatee County added 189 new cases, bringing the total number of infected to 7,709. The county’s death toll is now 154.

Manatee County’s percentage of those testing positive compared to the overall number of tests administered, continues to go in the wrong direction with a slight increase from 10.4 percent to 10.5 percent. The targeted positivity percentage from the onset of the pandemic is 9 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;

The state’s positivity rate also increased from 12.26 percent to 12.41 percent.

According to DOH, Manatee County is the tenth highest county for pediatric cases with 633 and the positivity rate for those under the age of 18 is higher than the county average at 13.3 percent.

More than 23,000 pediatric cases have been reported in the state with four deaths.

When the pandemic began, it was the nursing homes and long-term care facilities that represented the largest number of cases, but that percentage has fallen dramatically over the past few weeks to just 8 percent of the overall cases. But the number of fatalities from those facilities still represent the majority of Manatee County’s death toll with 84 of the 154 deaths.

Manatee County’s largest infected age group is between 24 and 34 years of age. Infections have begun to strike younger age groups with the vast majority of cases being between the age of 15 and 44.

However, deaths dramatically increase for those over the age of 55 and continue to hit the elderly the hardest. There have been six deaths in Manatee County for those between the ages of 45 and 54, but jumps to 20 for the age group of 55 to 64. The fatalities continue to climb from there with 97 of the county’s fatalities striking those over 75 years of age.

Manatee County cases from Friday to Saturday:

• Cases increased from 7,520 to 7,709
• The death toll increased from 153 to 154.
• The number of residents hospitalized since the outbreak increased from 468 to 470.
• The number of males infected is 3,568 compared to 3,925 females.
• The number of tests administered increased from 71,975 to 73,292.
• Manatee County’s overall positivity rate increased from 10.4 percent to 10.5 percent.

Florida cases from Friday to Saturday:

• Cases increased from 402,312 to 414,511.
• The number of deaths increased from 5,653 to 5,777
• Florida’s positivity rate increased from 12.26 percent to 12.41 percent.

Surrounding counties:

• Pinellas County cases increased from 14,726 to 14,985. The death toll increased from 367 to 372.
• Hillsborough County cases increased from 26,037 to 26,626. The death toll remains at 280.
• Hardee County cases increased from 759 to 776. The death toll remains at four.
• DeSoto County cases increased from 1,144 to 1,164. The death toll remains at 14.
• Sarasota County cases increased from 4,837 to 5,006. The death toll remains at 113.