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Coronavirus in the Carolinas: NC hospitalizations set another record high

By WSOCTV.com News Staff
By WSOCTV.com News Staff

Here is a roundup of what’s happening so far today, June 19, surrounding COVID-19 in both North Carolina and South Carolina (click here for yesterday’s coverage). Scroll below for live, local real-time minute-by-minute updates.

>> Have questions about the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the Carolinas? We have an entire section dedicated to coverage of the outbreak -- CLICK HERE FOR MORE.

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[COUNTY-BY-COUNTY COVID-19 RESOURCE GUIDE]

[CORONAVIRUS IN THE CAROLINAS; HERE’S HOW TO STAY INFORMED]

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Live, local updates from Friday:

Caldwell County sees highest number of hospitalizations in 1 day

Thirteen COVID-19 cases were reported today in Caldwell County — seven in the 28645 Zip code, one in the 28630, four in 28638, and one in 28601. Four patients are under the age of 24, five fall between the ages of 25 and 64, and four are over the age of 65.

As of Friday afternoon, 10 Caldwell County residents with COVID-19 were hospitalized. This marks the highest number of Caldwell County patients with COVID-19 hospitalized on a single day. These patients are being treated at Caldwell UNC Health Care, Carolinas HealthCare System Blue Ridge (Grace Hospital), Frye Regional Medical Center, UNC Medical Center, and Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Statewide 871 people with COVID-19 are currently hospitalized in reporting hospitals. Ninety-one percent of hospitals report to the state. According to NC Department of Health and Human Services, 80 percent of hospital and ICU beds are filled, but only 27 percent of ventilators are in use statewide.

Lincoln County reports 67 cases

Lincoln County reported 67 active positive cases, 107 recovered and one death.

[LINK: Check My Symptoms Tool]

NC hospitalizations hit a record high for fourth straight day

With 91% of hospitals reporting, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services reported another record high number of COVID-19 hospitalizations for the fourth day in a row.

Currently, 871 people are in the hospital with severe symptoms due to the novel coronavirus.

NCDHHS reports 20% of hospital inpatient beds and 20% of Intensive Care Unit beds are currently available across the state, and 73% of ventilators are available.

The new hospitalization record comes as the state reports at least 1,652 more positive COVID-19 cases and 22 more deaths, for a total of 49,840 cases and 1,197 deaths since the pandemic began.

The state more than doubled its testing goal, with 18,635 more tests reported Friday. Currently, 9% of tests are positive, a number which has remained roughly stable since increasing slightly earlier this month.

Mecklenburg County continues to lead the state in cases and deaths, with 8,166 and 131 respectively.

Lab-confirmed cases: 49,840

Completed tests: 712,313

Currently hospitalized: 871

Statewide deaths: 1,197

Confirmed cases by age:

0-17 (9%)

18-24 (11%)

25-49 (45%)

50-64 (20%)

65-74 (7%)

75 or older (7%)

COVID-19 deaths by age:

25-49 (5%)

50-64 (14%)

65-74 (20%)

75 or older (61%)

Cases by race:

White: 55%

Black: 25%

Cases by gender:

Women: 50%

Men: 50%

(Men account for 52% of deaths)

Cases and deaths in congregate living settings:

There are 106 outbreaks in nursing homes across the state, resulting in 4,144 cases and 616 deaths.

There are 60 outbreaks at residential care facilities across the state, resulting in 1,150 cases and 103 deaths.

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Mecklenburg County Manager Dena Diorio and Public Health Director Gibbie Harris updated the county on the latest virus trends

Mecklenburg County Manager Dena Diorio said Friday that the county is still in talks about a possible face-covering requirement. The issue will be taken up at the July 7 county commissioners meeting.

County offices will reopen in July, Diorio said. She will brief commissioners on Tuesday at their meeting. Offices will be open for both employees and customers.

Harris discussed statistical data and how it is collected. Every positive test in Mecklenburg County is included in the data but not all negative tests are reported. Negative test data for two hospital systems (Atrium and Novant) are included and they conduct 75% of all tests. Harris says she is comfortable with that data.

Harris said that social distancing is almost back to where it was before the Stay-at-Home order was issued in March.

7,850 cases now being reported in Mecklenburg County, with 21 outbreaks in long-term care centers (now defined as one case at any congregate living facility) and 136 deaths, Harris said. She said the number of cases continues to increase, and we are trending poorly -- positive test rate currently is 10.6%, with an average of 118 hospitalized -- both numbers are up.

Harris says data shows Minneapolis protests and testing of protesters reveals low positivity rate of COVID-19, and the same in Seattle and Boston.

“There appears to be a way to prevent these gatherings from being a hot spot -- the key is wearing your mask and being outside,” she said.

Anyone who has attended a protest or large gathering, works in a long-term care center, etc., should get tested. The is no cost for tests. ID is required. The county is trying to perform 1,000 tests per day.

“We will not test our way out of this pandemic,” Harris said.

Harris also said work continues with various partners to increase testing but there are capacity limits. They are averaging 2,500 tests per day in Mecklenburg County. On June 27-28, the county will offer drive-through testing at 3205 Freedom Drive from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. -- available to anyone with COVID-19 symptoms.

Harris went on to say that there is no substitute for social distancing and hand-washing. The Stay-at-Home order has been effective at slowing the spread but it is not a long-term solution. She said the county needs to be careful before reopening things further.

When asked about why nursing home death rates were so high, Harris said a lack of testing is one of the problems. Another issue is having workers who go to multiple facilities and can cause community spread.

“We are waiting to hear what the governor has to say (about next steps/Phase 3)”, Harris said. “My concern is not everyone is being compliant with Phase 2. If we expand, I’m concerned about the message that sends to the community. I’m watching our data, it’s not going in the right direction.”

There has been no spike in COVID-19 cases among CMPD officers since the protests started, Harris said.

Anyone who has been to a mass gathering of any sort should be tested, Harris said.

Harris was also asked about whether retailers should requiring face-coverings. She said she thinks there are benefits from that and that it helps protect people. If Mecklenburg County eventually requires masks, there will be exceptions, including eating and drinking.

When asked about local hospital capacity, Harris said they are fuller than they were before because they have reopened for elective surgeries. They are currently in the 70% to 80% capacity range. Harris said hospitals can reduce that percentage fairly quickly and also ‘have the ability to scale up -- they’re adjusting every day, and I’m comfortable with where we are.”

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North Carolina’s May Employment Figures Released

The state’s seasonally adjusted May unemployment rate was 12.9 percent, remaining unchanged from April’s revised rate. The national rate decreased 1.4 percentage points to 13.3 percent.

North Carolina’s May 2020 unemployment rate increased 8.9 percentage points from a year ago. The number of people employed increased 118,154 over the month to 4,200,388 and decreased 662,968 over the year. The number of people unemployed increased 16,021 over the month to 621,713 and increased 417,511 over the year.

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Data for Mecklenburg County COVID-19 Cases Reported as of June 17

As of yesterday, there were 7,767 cases of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) with 136 deaths due to COVID-19 reported among Mecklenburg County residents. Data from the previous day are further described below.

As of June 17, 2020, 7,536 cases of and 134 deaths due to COVID-19 among county residents were reported to Mecklenburg County Public Health (MCPH).

MCPH provides these routine updates about reported cases of COVID-19 to help our community better understand how this pandemic is developing in our county. These results only reflect laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 among county residents. Many individuals infected by COVID-19 have not been tested because they are asymptomatic. As such, these results are very fluid and only represent a fraction of the true burden of COVID-19 in our community.

Daily case counts provided by MCPH may differ from state and federal counts due to delays in reporting to the various entities. MCPH updates case counts after an initial case review and, where possible, a patient interview is conducted, which includes confirming county residency. Cases reported after 5 p.m. are counted in the following day’s case count.

Highlights about the epidemiology of COVID-19 in Mecklenburg County as of June 17, 2020 include:

  • About 3 in 4 reported cases were adults ages 20 to 59 years old.
  • More than a third of reported cases are Hispanic – most of whom are younger adults. The high number of reported cases among young Hispanics over the last several weeks remains a significant concern. As previously noted, some factors influencing this trend include:
  1. Targeted testing occurring in neighborhoods with lower access to care, some of which have larger Hispanic populations;
  2. Higher proportions of Hispanics working in essential jobs that make social distancing difficult;
  3. Significant household spread among large families; and
  4. Pre-existing disparities in other social and economic determinants of health, like poverty.

MCPH continues to expand outreach to Hispanic members of our community, including increased dissemination of the outreach toolkit in Spanish for community partners, targeted outreach and support to Hispanic owned- and serving-businesses, and partnering with local organizations and media outlets to spread key prevention messages.

  • About 1 in 12 reported cases were hospitalized due to their COVID-19 infection. While everyone is at risk for severe COVID-19 complications, reported cases who were older adults (≥ 60 years) were more likely to be hospitalized compared to younger individuals.
  • More than half of cases have met CDC criteria to be released from isolation.
  • During the past week, an average of 118 individuals with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infections were hospitalized at acute care facilities in Mecklenburg County. This represents an increase over the last 14 days. These data are based on daily census counts from acute care facilities in Mecklenburg County reporting to MCPH.
  • During the past week, an average of 10.6 percent of individuals who were tested were positive for COVID-19. This represents an increase over the last 14 days. These data only include tests conducted by Atrium Health and Novant Health. Reporting of negative results to MCPH is not required or covered by communicable disease reporting laws. MCPH will include results from other providers and laboratories as accurate, consistent and timely reporting mechanisms are established. Atrium Health and Novant Health continue to administer most COVID-19 tests in Mecklenburg County, as such these trends are consistent and reliable over time.
  • One hundred-thirty-four deaths due to COVID-19 occurred among reported cases.
  • Almost all deaths were among older adults (≥ 60 years), 14 deaths were adults ages 40 to 59.
  • All deaths, except two, occurred among adults with underlying chronic illnesses.
  • More than half were non-Hispanic Whites. The disparity in COVID-19 deaths among non-Hispanic Whites is related to differences in race/ethnicity of residents of long-term care (LTC) facilities actively experiencing an outbreak.
  • Nearly 2 out of 3 deaths were connected to active outbreaks at long-term care (LTC) facilities.

Based on publicly available mobility tracking data, there was a decrease in social distancing in Mecklenburg County over the last 14-days. Mobility is nearing baseline levels prior to the Stay at Home Order becoming effective.

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FRIDAY MORNING STORYLINES

Mecklenburg County Manager Dena Diorio and Public Health Director Gibbie Harris will be holding a news conference updating the public on COVID-19 at 11 a.m. Channel 9 will carry that news conference live on-air and will stream it on wsoctv.com.

North Carolina announced plans to test all state prison inmates for COVID-19 over the next two months. The move to do so comes after a court ordered the state to come up with a plan to offer a coronavirus test to its entire prison population.

Officials said the testing will cost an estimated $3.3 million and take at least 60 days. Gov. Roy Cooper said all staff members at the prisons will also be tested.

Raleigh’s face-covering requirement begins Friday at 4 p.m. It’ll be mandatory to wear a mask in places like grocery stores, pharmacies and on public transit. Similar requirements in Durham and Orange counties are already in effect.

North Carolina legislators have sent another bill to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper designed to overturn parts of his executive order for COVID-19 safety measures that have kept several types of retail businesses shuttered for months. The General Assembly finalized a measure to let bowling alleys and ice and roller rinks to reopen at a reduced capacity.

Cooper has already vetoed one measure that sought to reopen bars by letting them serve patrons outdoors. Another bill already on his desk would benefit gyms in addition to bars. Cooper has said he’ll announce next week whether he’ll ease further commerce limits when his current order expires June 26.

North Carolina bar owners will be heading to court on Friday to ask a judge to allow all bars to reopen after places like restaurants and breweries have been able to open their doors.

Bar owners say it’s time to open every bar and that’s what they will ask for when they head to court.

The state association that represents them filed a lawsuit demanding the same treatment as restaurants, breweries and distilleries.

More than 1,000 private bars and taverns have fought to reopen ever since Gov. Roy Cooper announced they would not be included under a modified Phase 2 plan. They took another hit earlier this month when the governor vetoed a bill that would've allowed them to reopen.

The North Carolina Bar and Tavern Association says they understand the caution during a pandemic, but it has to be fair. They said their bars and taverns may be forced to close permanently if they can’t get back to business soon.

The hearing begins at 10 a.m. The court is likely to make a decision next week.

© 2020 Cox Media Group

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