COVID data
Nevada’s positivity rate inches up for third consecutive day
Nevada’s two-week coronavirus positivity rate increased for the third straight day as new cases and fatalities remained above average.
The positivity rate, which essentially tracks how many people tested for COVID-19 are infected with the virus, reached 4.5 percent on Wednesday. The rate has increased by 0.1 percentage points each day since Monday after steadily declining for nearly three months to a low of 4.percent on March 29, according to data posted online by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Clark County’s two-week positivity rate also increased by 0.1 percentage points, reaching 4.3 percent.
Nevada on Wednesday also reported 277 new coronavirus cases and 11 additional deaths, according to state data. Totals in the state rose to 305,929 cases and 5,308 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
The new cases were above the moving two-week average of daily recorded cases, which increased slightly to 203. Deaths were also well above the moving two-week average of three fatalities per day, the data shows.
All of the deaths recorded on Wednesday occurred in Clark County, according to data from the Southern Nevada Health District’s coronavirus website.
Along with the positivity rate, both new cases and deaths have been declining steadily since at least mid-january along with other disease metrics, although state officials noted last week that the downward trend appeared to be flattening.
State and county health agencies often redistribute the daily data after it is reported to better reflect the date of death or onset of symptoms, which is why the moving-average trend lines frequently differ from daily reports and are considered better indicators of the direction of the outbreak.
There were 316 people in Nevada hospitalized with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases as of Wednesday’s report, 35 fewer than the day prior, according to state data.
Nevertheless, Caleb Cage, the state’s COVID-19 response director, said during a call with reporters on Wednesday that the state has recently experienced a “slight increase” in hospitalizations, but that it is not placing a “significant burden” on the health care system at this time.
Clark County on Wednesday reported 230 new cases, according to the county health district. Cumulative totals for the county rose to 236,130 cases and 4,157 deaths.