Thursday marked the 12th straight day the state health department reported fewer than 5,000 new coronavirus cases. A trend that health officials hope continues.
The Florida Department of Health on Thursday reported 3,269 new COVID-19 cases. The new cases bring the state’s running total since March, when the novel coronavirus was first discovered in the state, to 611,991 cases.
The new cases come as tens of thousands of students in Central Florida have returned to school for in-person learning.
Schools in Osceola, Flagler, Brevard, Sumter, Marion and Lake County started in-person learning this week.
[CORONAVIRUS ON CAMPUS: Students, staff in quarantine after COVID-19 cases reported at Osceola schools | 15 positive cases reported at Brevard County schools in weeks before start of year, union says]
As of Thursday morning, there were 4,294 patients currently hospitalized with coronavirus in Florida, according to the state Agency for Healthcare Administration.
The Florida Department of Health reported 314 new hospitalizations on Thursday, bringing the overall total to 37,718 since March.
Florida continues to see an increase in the number of deaths related to COVID-19.
On Thursday, the state announced 139 new fatalities, bringing Florida’s death toll from the virus up to 11,011. The total includes 10,868 residents and 143 non-residents who died in Florida.
Many people who test positive for COVID-19 will have mild or no symptoms at all, which is why it is important to monitor hospitalizations and deaths attributed to the virus.
The positivity rate, which represents the number of people who tested positive for the first time compared to the overall number of tests reported by the DOH for the day prior was 6.36% on Thursday.
Florida has continually shown a dip in the positivity rate. Health officials agreed that the rate should be under 10% for two weeks to show infections are on the decline.
On Thursday, Florida official marked its 14th day in a row where the rate was below 10%.
[READ MORE: Orange County Public Schools releases list of worksites that had COVID-19 cases]
Here are three things to know about coronavirus in Central Florida and across the U.S. for Thursday:
- Back to school woes: School leaders are keeping a close eye on attendance as districts have students learning from home, receiving instruction in the classroom or a combination of both options. So far, school districts reporting low attendance on the first day with Marion County saying more than 11,000 students didn’t show up for traditional or online classes. A district spokesperson says with the different learning options, attendance may look different but it expects to reach projected enrollment by the end of the week.
- Deputies: Man hits Disney worker over mask: Deputies said Enrico Toro arrived at the park Aug. 14 with his wife and three children but when they arrived at the check-in area, security guards told them they needed to put different masks on since the ones they were wearing didn’t meet Disney’s standards. Deputies said Toro became irate, began cursing and said, “Call the police, they will have to shoot me to leave.” To continue reading click or tap here.
- Who does face mask protect?: Studies on the new coronavirus and other germs show wearing a mask helps stop infected people from spreading the disease to others. Evidence also suggests that masks may offer some protection for the people wearing them. Masks may protect the people wearing them by reducing the number of droplets from others that might make contact with them. For more on what a mask can do, click or tap here.
[MORE COVERAGE: Seminole County schools asks more than 100 people to quarantine after exposure to COVID-19]
Below is a breakdown of COVID-19 cases across Central Florida as of Aug. 27:
| County | Total Cases | New Cases | Total Hospitalizations | New Hospitalizations | Total Deaths | New Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brevard | 7,092 | 52 | 633 | 4 | 205 | 5 |
| Flagler | 1,279 | 4 | 107 | 1 | 15 | 0 |
| Lake | 6,213 | 50 | 372 | 7 | 99 | 1 |
| Marion | 8,261 | 89 | 722 | 11 | 165 | 9 |
| Orange | 35,245 | 162 | 1,089 | 7 | 369 | 4 |
| Osceola | 10,892 | 48 | 537 | 5 | 128 | 0 |
| Polk | 16,569 | 71 | 1,811 | 10 | 425 | 2 |
| Seminole | 7,896 | 57 | 562 | 12 | 169 | 0 |
| Sumter | 1,754 | 12 | 205 | 1 | 48 | 1 |
| Volusia | 9,126 | 57 | 699 | 4 | 186 | 1 |
Editor’s note: The numbers and data referenced in this story are publicly available on the Florida Department of Health website here and on the AHCA dashboard here.
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