COVID cases top 12,000; 153 die

Florida’s Department of Health on Saturday confirmed 12,311 additional cases of COVID-19 to bring the state’s known total to 1,639,914. Also, 153 resident deaths were announced, bringing the resident death toll to 25,164.

The number of deaths, and day-to-day cases, dropped after Florida reported a near record number of resident deaths — 272 — in a single day on Friday. Positivity percentages also dropped in Saturday’s report, after soaring across the state on Friday.

Three new non-resident deaths were also announced, bringing the non-resident toll to 397. The total death count for the state is 25,561, the fourth highest in the country after New York, California and Texas, according to the New York Times database of U.S. cases.

According to the state’s Saturday COVID-19 vaccine report, 1,328,175 people have been vaccinated in Florida — with 151,447 of those people having completed the series of two doses.

Of those who completed the two-dose vaccination, 23,266 were Miami-Dade residents, 17,276 were Broward residents, 323 were Monroe residents and 7,213 were Palm Beach County residents.

Miami-Dade County reported 2,334 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 25 new

Adeaths, according to Florida’s Department of Health. The county now has 357,038 confirmed cases and 4,703 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 10.83% to 6.31%, from Friday to Saturday.

Broward County reported 1,149 additional confirmed cases of the disease and seven new deaths. The county has a known total of 165,045 cases and 2,018 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 13.52% to 5.47%, from Friday to Saturday.

Palm Beach County saw 812 additional confirmed cases and 10 new deaths. The county now has 101,831 confirmed cases and 2,093 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 10.92% to 5.88%, from Friday to Saturday.

Monroe County confirmed 30 additional cases and no new deaths. The county has a known total of 5,135 cases and 39 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases decreased from 14.29% to 3.98%, from Friday to Saturday.

As of noon Saturday, there were 6,712 COVID-19 patients admitted into hospitals throughout the state, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration dashboard. This is at mid-August levels, when more than 7,000 COVID-19 patients were admitted into hospitals throughout the state.

Of Saturday’s hospitalizations, 966 were in Miami-Dade, 604 in Broward, 436 in Palm Beach and eight in Monroe.

AAA