New COVID-19 cases, deaths up in Pennsylvania. See the CDC community level map, more
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported rising COVID-19 cases and deaths ahead of Christmas weekend.
The commonwealth agency, which reports coronavirus data on its public health dashboard on Wednesdays, tracked 14,384 new, confirmed cases as of Dec. 21. The reporting window for those cases ran Dec. 14-20, and the new cases are an increase of nearly 850 over the previous week.
In addition, the health agency also reported 176 new deaths since the last update, compared to 135 in the previous period. The new deaths from COVID-19 bring the state’s toll to 48,798 since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.
Pennsylvania reported slightly fewer hospitalizations last week, with the data point on serious infections falling from 1,329 individuals hospitalized for treatment to 1,317. The number in intensive care units and on ventilators grew, however.
As of Wednesday, the state reports 170 patients in adult ICUs and 75 on ventilators.
COVID-19 community levels in Pennsylvania
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports cases and death are trending up slightly across the U.S. this week as hospitals struggle to meet demand for treatment of respiratory viruses, including the flu and RSV (Respiratory syncytial virus). The convergence of the three viruses has been dubbed the tripledemic.
Despite the rise in cases in Pennsylvania, only one county was rated at a high COVID-19 community level as of Thursday.
Mercer County has been scored at high for at least three weeks.
In areas were the community level is high, the CDC recommends wearing a mask in public, indoor places, along with other health guidance. Those at an increased risk for severe disease should consider masking in areas at medium, as well.
As for the rest of the commonwealth, 28 counties are scored at medium as of Dec. 22 – all in the eastern part of the state – and the remaining 38 are at low.
The community levels are calculated weekly based on new cases and hospitalizations per 100,000 individuals (seven-day totals) and the percent of COVID-occupied staffed hospital beds (a seven-day average).
COVID-19 in Centre County
As it has for several weeks, Centre County remains at a low community level.
According to the CDC’s data, the number of new confirmed cases of COVID-19 there have remained relatively steady over the past couple week, with 140 reported for the latest week. The case rate sits around 86 per 100,000.
The positivity rate inched up just slight over the last week, from 9.13% to 9.39%, and the number of tests performed also saw a small rise.
For information on finding a free COVID-19 test near you, visit the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s listing page online.
If you need a COVID-19 vaccine or booster, you can search locations near you by visiting vaccines.gov.