Coronavirus in Florida – April 22nd
Bottom Line: We’ve had 811 new cases and 44 deaths in Florida attributed to the coronavirus over the past day. That’s a mixed bag of news. More diagnosed cases than on Monday but fewer deaths. In general, the recent improving trend in our state is intact. Yesterday’s new case count is still about 400 fewer than last Thursday and the peak for cases in our state remains April 3rd. This week I’ve begun tracking Florida’s performance against President Trump’s 3-Phase plan for reopening the country. It continues to show the potential for us to be on track for a potential phase 1 reopening on May 1st.
Overall hospitalizations are currently at their highest levels in Florida, with 4,226 COVID-19 patients currently being served. That’s an increase of about 200 yesterday, though Florida’s hospital system still has capacity available if needed. Florida remained 8th in the country in total cases and 10th in deaths. We’re the third most populous state. Florida’s performing far better than most states on a relative basis. We’re also testing more aggressively than most states, adjusted for population, making the performance of our state even more impressive. The range in age for positive tests in our state ranges from infants to 104. More than half of all of Florida’s cases currently are in the tri-county area with Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach having the most cases in the state in that order.
Here’s where we now stand in Florida:
- 27,869 cases – 867 deaths
Here’s the count in South Florida right now...
- Broward: 4,168
- Miami-Dade: 10,056
- Palm Beach: 2,320
We continue to see the positive test rate improve. To date 9.6% of all tests for COVID-19 have come back positive. That’s a decline from 11% at the peak, backing up the idea we’ve crossed the peak in Florida. It’s also one of the three keys to a phase 1 reopening under the president’s plan. Still, the further into testing we go, the newest diagnosed cases are new cases obtained through community spread. This reinforces the importance of adhering to the warnings of public officials including social distancing, safer-at-home declarations and wearing masks in public. The highest concentration of cases is coming from those between the ages of 45-54.