Covid hospitalizations continue to decline in Pennsylvania

The number of Pennsylvanians hospitalized because of covid-19 continues to decline at a rapid pace.

According to the latest data from OpenData PA, which tracks hospital numbers in the state, the number of patients hospitalized has dropped 12% in the past week and 46% in the past month.

As of Monday, there were 2,881 people hospitalized with coronavirus in Pennsylvania. A week ago, that count was 3,280. A month ago, it was 5,318.

The number of patients in intensive care units has also been dramatically decreasing. Currently, there are 565 patients in ICUs in Pennsylvania. That number is down 13% in the past week (from 650) and 48% in the past month (from 1,092), according to state Department of Health data. Of the ICU patients across the state, 296 are on ventilators.

Monday’s covid report from the health department was delayed because of technical maintenance to the state’s National Electronic Disease Surveillance System.

When the numbers did come in, officials reported 7,221 new cases of coronavirus over the Sunday-Monday period — 6,540 of them confirmed through PCR tests. There were new 681 probable cases listed. Health officials define a probable case as one in which a patient has a positive viral antigen test or covid symptoms with a “high-risk exposure” to someone who has been confirmed to have coronavirus.

As of Monday, the state’s seven-day average stood at 3,821 — a 30% drop since one week ago (5,459) and 51.5% decline since Jan. 8 (7,889).

Health officials reported Monday that statewide percent positivity of covid-19 cases was at 8.6%, down from 9.3% last week.

“This is the first week in many, many weeks that we are seeing counties with lower than 5% positivity rates. … This is good news for mitigating the spread of this virus in our communities across the commonwealth,” Gov. Wolf said in a prepared statement Monday.

Officials said three counties now have a positivity rate lower than 5% and that there are no counties reporting over 20% positivity rate.

“We appreciate all residents who have taken steps to mitigate the spread in our communities and, while this fight is not over, our resilience in masking up, washing up and downloading the app are still as important as ever,” Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said. “While we wait for more vaccine, we need Pennsylvanians to be patient and continue practicing these proven health practices and mitigation efforts to unite against covid-19.”

Health officials reported the covid-related deaths total increased by 75 over the past two days, going from 22,396 on Saturday to 22,471 on Monday. However, the state also removed several covid-related deaths from its official count.

“Once death information is reported, the department conducts regular reviews to ensure all information reflects the most up-to-date information from those who are reporting the death,” Maggi Barton, deputy press secretary for the Department of Health, said Monday. “Through the review, the department received updated medical amendments from coroners and medical personnel where covid-19 was removed from the death record. Therefore, the department has updated the deaths reported today to reflect the number of deaths caused by covid-19 to date.”

As a result, the death totals for a few months declined — November by 11, December by seven, August by three, and October, June and April each by one.

Pennsylvania has recorded a total of 22,471 covid-related deaths.

Since the pandemic began in March 2020, the state has recorded 872,825 covid-19 cases, with 756,525 confirmed through PCR testing, and 116,300 probable cases. There have been 3,709,112 individuals who have tested negative for the virus.

Allegheny County

No additional deaths were reported in Allegheny County and 450 new cases were reported for Sunday and Monday, according to the county’s health department.

Of the newly reported cases, 393 were confirmed from 2,142 new PCR tests, and 57 cases were probable.

As of Monday, the county’s seven-day new case average stands at 285, down just 5% from last week, but down nearly 60% from Jan. 8 (711).

The new cases ranged in age from 1 to 99 years old, with a median age of 38, and 227 were female and 223 were male. The dates of the positive tests were from Dec. 11 to Feb. 7. Three tests were more than a week old.

Age breakdown:

• Ages 0-4: 8
• Ages 5-12: 26
• Ages 13-18: 32
• Ages 19-24: 38
• Ages 25-49: 181
• Ages 50-64: 87
• Ages 65 and over: 78

Hospitalizations in Allegheny County ticked up slightly from Sunday to Monday, with nine more in hospital care. However, that number is down 17% from a week ago (313) and 56% from a month ago (589).

Currently, according to the Open Data PA website, there are 261 Allegheny County residents hospitalized with covid-19, with 68 in intensive care units and 24 on ventilators.

Since the pandemic began, Allegheny County has recorded 71,533 cases of coronavirus, with 56,586 confirmed through PCR testing. There have been 343,781 individuals testing negative for the virus.

Westmoreland County

For the Sunday-Monday period, there were 137 new covid cases reported for Westmoreland County. Of those, 103 were confirmed through 1,016 new PCR tests. There were 34 probable cases reported.

The seven-day average of new cases in the county remained relatively unchanged over the past week, beginning the week at 82, down just two from last Monday (84). However, the seven-day average is down nearly 70% since Jan. 8 (from 271).

Health officials reported four new covid-related deaths in the county over in the past two days, bringing the total to 636.

Hospitalizations for Westmoreland County residents have been slowly declining since hitting a high of 184 a month ago. Currently, according to the Open Data PA website, there are 129 Westmoreland County residents hospitalized with covid-19 — a 30% drop from Dec. 8 and an 8.5% drop in the past week (from 141).

Of those in the hospital, nine are in intensive care units and four are on a ventilator.

Since the pandemic began, Westmoreland County has recorded 25,339 cases of coronavirus, with 18,208 confirmed through PCR testing. There have been 83,426 individuals testing negative for the virus.

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated since originally published with new data from the state.