JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida has set another new record for COVID-19 cases reported in a single day, with the CDC saying Friday that the state added 27,584 to its tally.
The state’s weekly report, issued late Friday, added 1,727 deaths, bringing Florida’s total to 43,979 since the pandemic began 18 months ago.
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The 7-day data showed 151,749 new cases of coronavirus in Florida -- the third straight week above 150,000. The state has now had 3,179, 714 cases since March 1, 2020.
Of the new cases in Florida diagnosed Aug. 20-26, 26,475 were among children under 12 who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated.
The statewide new-case positivity rate dropped to 16.8%, according to the state, which is the lowest since mid-July. It had been 20.1% the previous week.
Also down were cases numbers in Jacksonville and most surrounding counties. Duval County’s caseload was down for the fourth week in a row. St. Johns and Flagler counties were the only ones in North Florida that were still rising.
The 7-day moving average for new cases in Florida has remained over 21,000 for more than two weeks. The state is accounting for about 15% of the new cases nationally.
Florida leads the nation with 16,457 people hospitalized with COVID-19 on Friday, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Their metrics show that 85% of Florida’s overall hospital beds are occupied and 95% of the state’s ICU beds are filled.
Like cases, hospitalizations in Northeast Florida appear to be falling from a peak earlier this month, although intensive-care patients remain high -- near capacity -- and local medical centers report most COVID-19 patients in their ICUs are on ventilators.