TAMPA, Fla. — The Florida Department of Health reported another 8,530 newly-confirmed coronavirus cases on Sunday.
That number is now the third-highest single-day jump in new COVID-19 cases in Florida since tracking began in March, according to health department data.
For context, 72,195 test results were turned into the health department within the last day. That's a slight decrease from the day prior, which had 78,318 tests turned in. It's the third day in a row where more than 71,000 test results were received from the lab.
"A person is only counted once for each day they are tested, regardless of whether multiple specimens are tested or multiple results are received," the state said of the data.
Florida says 12.4 percent of those most recent tests were positive. Health experts have repeatedly recommended a 5 percent positivity rate over a two-week period to be comfortable reopening. Currently, Florida is seeing more than double that.
We've been tracking daily deaths, based on state data. The number of newly-reported deaths in the last 24 hours was 29. The hospitalization number is still hovering above 14,000.
Sunday's report marked the third day in a row new case reports were more than 8,500. Saturday saw a record-breaking 9,585 newly-confirmed cases.
Here's a breakdown of the new coronavirus cases reported by the state on each day for the past week:
- June 18: 3,207
- June 19: 3,822
- June 20: 4,049
- June 21: 3,494
- June 22: 2,926
- June 23: 3,286
- June 24: 5,508
- June 25: 5,004
- June 26: 8,942
- June 27: 9,585
- June 28: 8,530
Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state and federal leaders continue to point to increased testing as the cause for the rise in new cases each day. As of Sunday, more than 1.88 million people in the state have been tested.
On Thursday afternoon, DeSantis held a news conference at a Tampa high school and took questions from reporters regarding the state's response to COVID-19. The governor said the state needs to reduce the percent positivity rate, but also reiterated his comments about testing causing the jumps in cases.
"Some of what you're seeing...is mass testing regardless of symptoms," DeSantis said Thursday.
In response to a question about Texas pausing its reopening plan, DeSantis said "We are where we are. I didn't say we were going to the next phase."
Florida is currently in Phase Two of reopening, which began on June 5.
On Friday, the state suspended drinking at bars in response to the recent climb in newly-reported coronavirus cases.
The governor plans on holding a news conference on Sunday afternoon to give an update on COVID-19 in the state.
Around Tampa Bay
Each day, the Florida Department of Health receives lab results back from coronavirus tests. Below are Saturday, June 27's positive case numbers among residents of the Tampa Bay area, as reported Sunday morning by the state -- along with additional data.
Citrus County
- 13 newly-confirmed cases
- 4% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 277 total cases since the pandemic began
- 36 total hospitalizations (13% of all cases)
- 12 total deaths (4 % of all cases)
Desoto County
- 15 newly-confirmed cases
- 14% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 585 total cases since the pandemic began
- 56 total hospitalizations (10% of all cases)
- 10 total deaths (2% of all cases)
Hardee County
- 10 newly-confirmed cases
- 14.9% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 411 total cases since the pandemic began
- 36 total hospitalizations (9% of all cases)
- 3 total deaths (1% of all cases)
Hernando County
- 35 newly-confirmed cases
- 10.2% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 346 total cases since the pandemic began
- 32 total hospitalizations (9% of all cases)
- 5 total deaths (1% of all cases)
Highlands County
- 12 newly-confirmed cases
- 2.6% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 324 total cases since the pandemic began
- 57 total hospitalizations (18% of all cases)
- 11 total deaths (3% of all cases)
Hillsborough County
- 787 newly-confirmed cases
- 14.5% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 9,918 total cases since the pandemic began
- 602 total hospitalizations (6% of all cases)
- 132 total deaths (1% of all cases)
Manatee County
- 99 newly-confirmed cases
- 10.7% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 2,737 total cases since the pandemic began
- 258 total hospitalizations (9% of all cases)
- 130 total deaths (5% of all cases)
Pasco County
- 153 newly-confirmed cases
- 12.6% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 1,780 total cases since the pandemic began
- 126 total hospitalizations (7% of all cases)
- 17 total deaths (1% of all cases)
Pinellas County
- 306 newly-confirmed cases
- 10.6% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 6,020 total cases since the pandemic began
- 634 total hospitalizations (11% of all cases)
- 154 total deaths (3% of all cases)
Polk County
- 257 newly-confirmed cases
- 10.6% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 3,495 total cases since the pandemic began
- 457 total hospitalizations (13% of all cases)
- 93 total deaths (3% of all cases)
Sarasota County
- 61 newly-confirmed cases
- 8.3% = most recent percent positivity rate
- 1,401 total cases since the pandemic began
- 196 total hospitalizations (14% of all cases)
- 96 total deaths (7% of all cases)
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