Covid cases, hospitalizations continue to rise in Allegheny, Westmoreland

The latest reports of coronavirus cases show new cases are being found at increasingly higher numbers. Hospitalizations are also rising, although not as rapidly.

Over the past week, the Pennsylvania Department of Health has reported 24,875 new covid cases. Of that number, 21% (5,227) are old test results dating back to the start of the covid-19 pandemic.

In a press release Wednesday, the state said the additional (old) cases are part of “efforts to rectify and standardize case counts prior to finalizing annual infectious disease case counts in 2020 data issued to the CDC.”

The state said the backlog was due to “Philadelphia cases from early in the pandemic that were reported to the Philadelphia Department of Public Health and not PA-NEDSS, where the department’s data is generated.” Health officials said it is a one-time adjustment necessary to sync up data between the state and Philadelphia.

Even without the old cases, the past week’s case total in the state is 36% higher than last week (14,481).

Cases

Of the state’s new cases in the past week, 19,457 have been confirmed through PCR testing, while 5,418 are listed as probable cases. 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.

To date, there have been 1,281,199 total cases in Pennsylvania, with 1,068,775 of them confirmed through PCR testing.

In Allegheny County, there have been 1,902 new covid cases in the past week, with 1,154 of them confirmed and 748 listed as probable. The county has increased its cases over the past week by nearly 42% — from 1,343 on Aug. 18.

The overwhelming majority of new cases (851) were among those ages 25-49, with the next highest portion (318) among those ages 50-64. The group with the lowest cases (45) were those ages 4 and younger. There were 970 cases among females, 932 among males.

In all, Allegheny County has had 108,052 covid cases, with 81,293 of them confirmed.

Westmoreland County has recorded 696 new cases in the past week, with 316 confirmed and 380 listed as probable. Westmoreland’s new covid cases have more than doubled in the past week, with just 336 from Aug. 12-18.

In total, Westmoreland has seen 36,154 cases, with 24,078 of them confirmed.

When it comes to community transmission levels, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that all Pennsylvania counties are in one of two categories: substantial or high. Both Allegheny and Westmoreland counties are in high category, with Allegheny showing a 5% positivity rate and 137 cases per 100,000 residents; Westmoreland shows an 8.02% positivity rate and 159 cases per 100,000.

Here’s how other counties in the region fared over the past week, with total cases and their weekly change:

• Armstrong: 6,278 (+112)
• Beaver: 16,579 (+334)
• Butler: 18,664 (+378)
• Fayette: 14,001 (+252)
• Indiana: 6,776 (+119)
• Somerset: 8,380 (+127)
• Washington: 19,048 (+426)

The state has yet to offer a full report on the number of breakthrough cases (those among vaccinated individuals), however Maggi Barton, the health department’s deputy press secretary, said Wednesday that officials have made it a priority to identify those cases in Pennsylvania.

In the meantime, she said, “It is vitally important that individuals understand that the vaccination continues to be highly effective against the covid-19 virus especially serious illness, hospitalization and death. The Wolf administration continues to encourage all eligible Pennsylvanians to get vaccinated.”

Hospitalizations

According to OpenSource PA, the latest hospitalization numbers show there are 1,617 Pennsylvanians in facilities for covid-19, with 462 of those in intensive care units and 207 on ventilators. The number of hospitalizations statewide has increased by about 25% from last week (1,275), with the ICU numbers having risen by nearly 40% (332 last week).

There are 224 Allegheny County residents hospitalized for covid, an increase of 17% from last week (191). Of those in hospitals this week, 91 are in ICUs and 41 on ventilators.

In Westmoreland County, there are 34 residents in hospitals for covid — a rise of 70% from a week ago (20). Among those hospitalized in the county, 10 are in ICUs and seven on ventilators.

Deaths

In the past seven days, the state has reported 113 covid-related deaths, a 21.5% increase from a week ago. In all, there have been 28,131 reported covid deaths in Pennsylvania.

Of the latest announced deaths, 109 happened in August, with two from July, one from May and one from September 2020.

In Allegheny County, officials announced 15 covid-related deaths in the past week. Of those, 11 occurred in August, while there was one each from July and June. Two of the newly reported deaths occurred in December. Two of those who died were in the 25-49 age group, four among those 50-64, and nine were 65 or older. County officials report a total of 2,059 covid deaths, while the state reports 2,060. No full explanation for the difference has been given.

Westmoreland County saw four deaths in the past week, bringing the total there to 792.

Vaccinations

In terms of vaccinations, there are currently 8,766,124 Pennsylvanians with at least one dose of a covid-19 vaccine — that’s 68.5% of the entire state population. Of those considered fully vaccinated, there are 6,962,263 (54.4%). Among adults 18 and older, those percentages rise to 81.4% (one dose) and 65.1% (fully vaccinated).

In Allegheny County, there are 760,248 (62.1%) with one dose, and 690,242 (56.4%) fully vaccinated. Among adults, the percentages increase to 76.3% and 69.3%.

In Westmoreland County, there are 178,646 (48.9%) with at least one dose and 162,618 (44.5%) fully covered. Among adults, those percentages increase to 59.8% and 54.4%.