Commonwealth of Pennsylvania microbiologist Kerry Pollard performs a manual extraction of the coronavirus within the extraction laboratory at the Pennsylvania Department of Health Laboratory Office. Photo from the Office of the Governor of Pennsylvania.
Click on the photo to see the gallery
Updated at 5:30 p. M. July 25, 2020
Center County experienced a substantial increase in its COVID-19 case count on Sunday, with an additional 43 positives reported by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The largest previous increase in a single day was 11.
Since the first was reported on March 20, Center County has had 356 cases of COVID-19.
The reason for the Sunday spike, if exact, was not immediately clear.
“Statewide, there were no delays in reporting or downloading data to contribute to the increase in cases,” DOH spokesman Nate Wardle said in an email. “Preventing the spread of COVID-19 is essential to protect the health of Pennsylvanians. We are continually monitoring the increases in COVID-19 cases that occur in Pennsylvania. Even small increases in cases are troubling and are being observed with great care”.
The county also had 131 new negative results, which is on par with typical daily reports. A total of 7,754 patients in Center County have tested negative for the virus.
Chairman of the Board of Center County Commissioners Michael Pipe said he spoke to the governor’s office on Sunday after seeing the numbers and was initially informed that the increase may be due in part to the Friday deadline for Nursing homes in the state evaluate each resident and staff member. Pipe later said, however, that the increase was not the result of testing in nursing homes.
DOH data showed no change on Sunday for Central County nursing homes cases, which remained at 30 among residents and 18 among employees at three facilities.
Two COVID-19 patients in Center County are hospitalized as of 1 pm Sunday, which has not changed since Saturday.
Statewide, the health department reported 800 new positives reported Sunday, bringing the state total to 107,425. Sunday’s data included 148 new cases in Philadelphia and 133 in Allegheny County.
A total of 1,028,776 patients in Pennsylvania tested negative, an increase of 12,071 from Saturday. In the past seven days, 156,316 COVID-19 tests have been administered in Pennsylvania with 6,384 positive results, according to the DOH.
It is estimated that 75% of COVID-19 patients in the state, about 80,569, have recovered, according to a DOH calculation.
The health department also reported four New deaths attributed to the virus statewide, bringing the Pennsylvania total to 7,118. DOH has reported a total of nine COVID-19 deaths in Center County, the most recent on July 16. The Center County Coroner’s Office only confirmed six, the most recent of them on May 27. Because the health department lists deaths by county of residence, the coroner’s office may not have been notified of deaths of residents that occurred in other parts of the state.
In Pennsylvania, 709 COVID-19 patients are hospitalized, 95 of which require the use of a ventilator.
Among the state’s total cases, 104,401 are confirmed and 3,024 are probable. In Center County, 324 are confirmed and 32 are probable.
The 43 cases reported for the county on Sunday were confirmed, according to DOH.
The health department case map by zip code does not currently indicate where most of the new cases occurred.
Center County cases by zip code, based on available DOH data:
* Note: Specific numbers for zip codes with 1-4 cases are drawn up by the health department.
16801 (State College): 68 confirmed [+4], 8 probable
16823 (Bellefonte): 57 confirmed [+4], 5 probable
16803 (State College): 47 confirmed [+3], 6 probable
16827 (Boalsburg): 15 confirmed
16866 (Philipsburg): 15 confirmed [+1]
16875 (Spring Mills): 15 confirmed, 1-4 likely
16841 (Howard): 14 confirmed, 1-4 likely
16870 (Port Matilda): 12 confirmed
16828 (Center Hall): 10 confirmed [+2], 1-4 probable
16853 (Milesburg): 6 confirmed
16802 (University Park), 16820 (Aaronsburg), 16826 (Blanchard), 16829 (Clarence), 16832 (Coburn), 16844 (Julian), 16845 (Karthaus), 16851 (Lemont), 16852 (Madisonburg), 16854 (Millheim) , 16856 (Mingoville), 16865 (Pennsylvania oven), 16868 (Pine Grove Mills), 16872 (Rebersburg), 16874 (snowshoes), 16877 (warrior’s mark), and 16882 (Woodward) each has 1-4 confirmed or probable cases.
The health department added at least one case in University Park after removing it from zip codes with cases on Friday.
Among the bordering counties of Center County, Huntingdon now has 285 [+6] total cases Blair has 176 [+5]Union has 123 [+4]Clearfield is 116 [+2]Clinton is 110 [+3] and Mifflin is 91 [+2].
