Florida added 15,978 coronavirus cases and 213 deaths in the past week

Authorities in Florida reported 15,978 cases of the coronavirus during the seven-day period June 25 to July 1. This represents a 35% increase in weekly cases from the last reporting period.

That brings the total number of cases to 2,337,613 since the first two cases of the pandemic in Florida were reported on March 1, 2020, more than 16 months ago.

The state has added 213 deaths since the previous week’s report, bringing the total number of deaths from a pandemic to 37,985 statewide. It can take up to two weeks for authorities to confirm and report a coronavirus-related death.

The Florida Department of Health has announced last month that it would no longer release daily COVID-19 data. Instead, it now publishes a weekly report every Friday, but withholds information that was previously available to the public.

As of June 4, the state no longer reports non-resident vaccinations, coronavirus cases and deaths. The Florida Department of Health declined repeated requests to provide data on non-residents to the Tampa Bay Times.

“Florida is moving into the next phase of the COVID-19 response and has amended the reports to parallel that,” the agency said in a June 18 email. Time. “Among the reportable diseases monitored by the department, such as HIV and hepatitis, it is not common to calculate cases for non-residents of Florida.”

Florida is the only state that updates its coronavirus case count and data once a week. While weekly reports can be more reliable than daily updates, experts to warn that infrequent data updates can delay the identification of emerging trends.

Vaccination: Florida administered 248,721 doses of the vaccine over the past week. The number of first doses administered fell to 111,220, the fourth consecutive week of decline in first-dose vaccines.

So far, 58% of Florida residents aged 12 and older have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine, according to the state. This is a slight increase from 57% last week. Almost 50 percent of eligible residents have been fully immunized.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 64.7% of Florida adults aged 18 and older have been vaccinated, which failed to meet President Joe Biden’s goal of having 70% of adults at least partially vaccinated by July 4.

More than 83 percent of Floridians over 65 have been vaccinated, and 73 percent of those aged 60 to 64, according to state data. Meanwhile, immunization rates for those under 40 remain low. Only 30 percent of 12 to 19 year olds are vaccinated, while 37 percent of 20 to 29 year olds and 44 percent of 30 to 39 year olds have received the vaccine.

In Hillsborough County, 53 percent of residents aged 12 and over have been vaccinated; in Pinellas, 57 percent; in Pasco, 54%; to manatee, 56 percent; to Polk, 49%; in Hernando, 48 percent; and in Citrus, 50 percent.

Positivity: Florida’s positivity rate hit 5.2% last week, down from 3.8% the week before.

Before reopening, states should maintain a positivity rate of 5% or less for at least two weeks, according to the World Health Organization. A positivity rate of 5% or less indicates that the tests are widespread enough to capture mild, asymptomatic and negative cases.

Positivity rates were on the rise in the Tampa Bay area, where the positivity rate was 5.7% in Hillsborough, 3.7% in Pinellas, 4.9% in Pasco, 3.9% in Manatee, 5 , 9% in Polk, 5.8% in Hernando and 5.4% in citrus.

Hospitalizations: the Centers for Reported Disease Control and Prevention 273 confirmed COVID-19 patients were admitted to Florida hospitals daily from June 24 to 30, on average. The CDC did not provide updated figures on hospitalizations by county at the time of publication.

Local numbers: Tampa Bay added 2,444 cases over the past week, a 23% increase in weekly cases from the previous week. This brings the total number of cases in the Tampa Bay area to 409,208.

To Thursday’s tally, Hillsborough added 952 new cases, Pinellas 393 cases, Pasco 272 cases, Manatee 139 cases, Polk 506 cases, Hernando 111 cases and Citrus 71 cases.

The state no longer reports deaths by county. According to Data from the Centers for Disease Control and PreventionHillsborough, Pinellas, Polk, Manatee, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties each recorded less than 10 confirmed deaths linked to COVID-19 in the past week. The federal agency does not report exact deaths by county when the number is less than 10.

• • •

CORONAVIRUS IN FLORIDA: Find the latest numbers for your county, city or zip code.

NEED A VACCINE? Here’s how to find one in the Tampa Bay and Florida area.

Q&A ABOUT VACCINES: Have questions about the coronavirus vaccine? We have answers, Florida.

GET THE DAYSTARTER MORNING UPDATE: Sign up to receive the most recent information.

A TRIBUTE TO THE FLORIDIANS TAKEN BY CORONAVIRUS: They were parents and retirees, policemen and doctors, imperfect but deeply loved.

DO YOU HAVE AN ADVICE? : Send us confidential topical advice

We’re working hard to bring you the latest coronavirus news in Florida. This effort takes a lot of resources to collect and update. If you are not yet a subscriber, please consider purchasing a print or digital subscription.