Dec. 16 update: Pa. reports more than 10,000 new COVID-19 cases; Centre County adds 105
Pennsylvania reported a record number of deaths Wednesday due to COVID-19 as the state added more than 10,000 new cases of the virus and Centre County received its first shipment of the vaccine.
There have been 13,168 deaths statewide, a record one-day increase of 278.
In Centre County, three new deaths were reported by the Department of Health to bring the total to 113. The county coroner’s office has confirmed 89 deaths.
The county’s case total rose to 7,919 after 105 new positives were reported. Overall, there have been 7,503 confirmed cases and 416 probable cases, along with 50,619 negative tests.
Pennsylvania added 10,049 cases, which brings the state’s total to 519,369. There have been 3.09 million negative tests across the state.
Just days after the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine was approved for use, Mount Nittany Medical Center was one of seven hospitals in the state to receive doses Wednesday, the Health Department said.
UPMC Altoona also received the vaccine Wednesday as part of the first wave of 97,500 doses to be distributed to 87 hospitals across the state by Monday, the department said. Evangelical Community Hospital in Lewisburg and Geisinger-Lewistown Hospital were among the hospitals that received shipments Tuesday, the state said.
“These first doses of vaccine are being given specifically to health care workers through hospitals,” Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said in a statement. “Hospitals are making arrangements to implement these vaccinations, not only to their own frontline staff but to other high-priority recipients. The number of people we can immunize truly depends on how quickly the manufacturers can make the vaccine.”
Mount Nittany is treating 48 COVID-19 patients — five fewer patients than Tuesday’s update — between the ages of 31 and 95, a spokesperson said Wednesday.
The state’s hospital dashboard, which also includes rehabilitation facilities, shows 50 patients are hospitalized in Centre County, with four in intensive care and on a ventilator.
Across the state, 6,295 people are hospitalized with COVID-19 and 1,264 patients are in intensive care. Hospitalizations are running twice as high as their peak in the spring, the Health Department said.
The breakdown of confirmed Centre County cases by ZIP code is as follows, according to the Health Department:
- 16801 (State College): 3,289 (19 new cases)
- 16823 (Bellefonte and Pleasant Gap): 1,177 (31 new cases)
- 16802 (University Park): 792 (2 new cases)
- 16803 (State College): 573 (11 new cases)
- 16686 (Tyrone): 542 (8 new cases)
- 16866 (Philipsburg): 396 (13 new cases)
- 16870 (Port Matilda): 189 (5 new cases)
- 16841 (Howard): 163 (6 new cases)
- 16828 (Centre Hall): 127 (5 new cases)
- 16875 (Spring Mills): 124 (5 new cases)
- 16845 (Karthaus): 102 (7 fewer cases)
- 16827 (Boalsburg): 97 (1 new case)
- 16822 (Beech Creek): 80 (1 new case)
- 16844 (Julian): 63 (1 new case)
- 16874 (Snow Shoe): 62 (1 new case)
- 16853 (Milesburg): 61 (1 new case)
- 16666 (Osceola Mills): 59
- 16877 (Warriors Mark): 56 (1 new case)
- 16865 (Pennsylvania Furnace): 39 (1 new case)
- 16854 (Millheim): 34
- 16829 (Clarence): 33
- 16851 (Lemont): 32
- 16826 (Blanchard): 31
- 16872 (Rebersburg): 31
- 16820 (Aaronsburg): 29
- 16859 (Moshannon): 24
- 16856 (Mingoville): 18 (3 new cases)
- 16832 (Coburn): 15
- 16860 (Munson): 13
- 16868 (Pine Grove Mills): 11
- 16677 (Sandy Ridge): 10
- 16852 (Madisonburg): 8
- 16804 (State College): 7
- 16835 (Unionville): 6
- 16864, 16882: 1-4 cases each
The state does not provide specific numbers when there are fewer than five cases to protect patient privacy, and does not identify exactly where a case occurred in a ZIP code that spans multiple counties.
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 12:05 PM.