Virginia reports 57 new deaths due to COVID-19

Virginia reported 57 new deaths Thursday due to COVID-19, a new high in deaths reported in a 24-hour-period. There were 23 deaths in Northern Virginia.

Also, the number of ICU patients treated for coronavirus in the state climbed above 400 for the first time since April 22, according to new data. That number had fallen to 330 less than a week ago.

The Virginia Department of Health reported 1,152 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday morning, bringing the state's total to 41,401 cases since the pandemic began. Northern Virginia localities reported 685 new cases, or 59.5% percent of the state's total.

The region now accounts for 23,272 cases overall, around 56.2% percent of the state's total. Fairfax, the state's most populous locality, now has 10,503 cases and 371 deaths. Prince William has the second highest number of cases, 5,157, as well as 101 deaths.  

The state’s total number of deaths due to the coronavirus is at 1,338. Northern Virginia accounts for more than half of those deaths at 718. Fairfax added 7 deaths Thursday and accounts for more than 27% of the state's total overall.

Northern Virginia had 15 new hospitalizations reported Thursday, down from 33 reported Wednesday.

The health department's COVID-19 data is updated each morning by 10 a.m. and includes cases, deaths and hospitalizations reported by local health agencies before 5 p.m. the previous day. 

Testing numbers and positivity rates continue to improve across the region and statewide, which are two keys to additional loosening of restrictions.

In Northern Virginia, average positivity rates over the past seven days range from 16.8% in Arlington County to 21.2% in the Prince William Health District. The seven-day average positivity rate statewide is 13.8%. 

Statewide, 10,199 diagnostic test results were reported Thursday. The state has reported 285,273 diagnostic test results in total and 319,600 when including antibody tests. 

As previously reported, two children in Fairfax County have been treated for Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children, or MIS-C, a health condition associated with COVID-19.

Hospitalizations statewide increased to 1,502, up from 1,459 on Wednesday, according to the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association. That's more than 150 more patients than were hospitalized as recently as Sunday, but still well below the peak of 1,625 in early May.  Hospitals have capacity for more than 8,000 additional patients in Virginia, according to the state health department.

The association reported that 416 patients are in intensive-care units, the highest number in more than a month, and 195 COVID-19 patients are on ventilators. The association said 5,472 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from hospitals in the state since the pandemic began.

The association also said 1,587 patients are being treated for COVID-19 at licensed nursing homes in the state. That is down from 1,683 reported Wednesday.

The information represents data reported voluntarily by 250 of the 286 licensed nursing homes in Virginia in the prior 72 hours. Assisted living facilities are not included in the dashboard because they are licensed by the state Department of Social Services, not the health department. 

Some of these facilities are continuing to struggle with a supply shortage — 14 nursing homes reported difficulty obtaining N95 masks and 18 reported difficulty obtaining isolation gowns.

The coronavirus that started in China in late 2019 has led to more than 356,100 deaths, including 100,442 deaths in the U.S., according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University. More than 5.71 million cases of the virus have been reported, including nearly 1.7 million cases in the U.S. 

Johns Hopkins notes that more than 391,500 patients have recovered in the U.S. and more than 2.36 million have recovered worldwide. 

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