The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services reported just 8,467 completed tests on Tuesday, which was fewer than Monday’s one-month low.
Health officials have repeatedly said fewer people are seeking COVID-19 tests, and have urged North Carolinians who believe they may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus to get tested at a free site.
To date, 7.4% of tests were positive.
The state also reported 1,345 new COVID-19 cases and 35 deaths.
After a steady downward trend in the number of cases reported daily, the 7-day average for new cases has started to trend upwards over the last week.
Currently, 1,000 people are hospitalized with COVID-19 statewide.
>> 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.
In a news conference Tuesday, NCDHHS Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen said that while North Carolina is making progress on its COVID-19 trends, that progress is fragile and could quickly reverse if people stop following the 3 w’s.
”The 3 w’s is going to be part of all of our lives during the months to come,” Cohen said.
Cohen clarified that the 3 w’s apply to both public and private interactions. While she said many North Carolinians are wearing their face coverings during trips to the grocery store or post office, she added that they should also be worn during interactions with friends or extended family members that live outside of the same household, or when going to work.
Cohen also emphasized that North Carolinians should avoid crowds, and are required under executive order not to gather in groups of more than 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors, with some exceptions. She also advised keeping hand sanitizer in one’s car, purse or pocket and using it whenever going into or leaving a public space, or using a public service like a gas pump.
In addition to announcing a tool kit to help community organizations create testing events and a new awareness campaign targeted towards the Latinx community, Cohen also highlighted a program that will launch in the next few weeks to assist North Carolinians who are struggling to quarantine or isolate with food, relief payments and primary medical care.
”Treating any disease is so much more than just giving out a diagnosis,” Cohen said. “We have to treat the whole person.”
Cohen said people who need additional help with nutrition or transportation while quarantining will be connected to a community health worker who will in turn help them get the services they need.
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[COUNTY-BY-COUNTY COVID-19 RESOURCE GUIDE]
[CORONAVIRUS IN THE CAROLINAS; HERE’S HOW TO STAY INFORMED]
Note: The numbers we show you every day mean everything in how our community recovers from coronavirus -- both in terms of healthcare and the economy -- but they don’t mean much without the proper context and as much transparency as possible.
New cases vary day by day based on a lot of factors. That can include how long it takes to get results back, so a new case reported today can really be several days old.
The other big metric we watch is the percent of positive cases. This is data we can only get from the state because it’s not as simple as factoring a percent of new cases each day from the number of tests. That’s because test results take days and come from a variety of places.
WHAT ABOUT CLOSER TO HOME?
As of Tuesday morning, there were 24,501 cases of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), with 282 deaths due to COVID-19 reported among Mecklenburg County residents. Data from Sunday are presented below.
Highlights about the epidemiology of COVID-19 in Mecklenburg County as of Aug. 23, 2020 include:
- About 3 in 4 reported cases were adults ages 20 to 59 years old.
- About 3 in 10 reported cases are Hispanic – most of whom are younger adults. As previously noted, some factors influencing this trend include:
- Targeted testing occurring in neighborhoods with lower access to care, some of which have larger Hispanic populations;
- Higher proportions of Hispanics working in essential jobs that make social distancing difficult;
- Significant household spread among large families; and
- 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, setting up targeted outreach to Hispanic owned- and serving-businesses, and partnering with local organizations and media outlets to spread key prevention messages.
- About 1 in 20 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.
- About 3 out of 4 have met CDC criteria to be released from isolation.
- During the past week, an average of 120 laboratory-confirmed infections were reported similar to the 14-day average of 122 confirmed infections. These data are based on Mecklenburg resident cases reported to MCPH.
- During the past week, an average of 145 individuals with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infections were hospitalized at acute care facilities in Mecklenburg County. Overall this represents a decrease 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 6.4 percent of individuals who were tested in Mecklenburg County were positive for COVID-19. This represents a decrease over the last 14 days. These data only include tests conducted by Atrium Health, Novant Health, CVS Health and Walgreens when available. 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.
- Two hundred-eighty-two deaths due to COVID-19 occurred among reported cases.
- Almost all deaths were among older adults (≥ 60 years), 4 deaths occurred in adults ages 20 to 39 and 38 deaths were adults ages 40 to 59.
- All deaths, except three, 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.
- More than half of the deaths were connected to active outbreaks at long-term care (LTC) facilities.
- Among deaths not connected to outbreaks at long-term care facilities, nearly 3 in 4 were non-White, with 40 percent being non-Hispanic Black. As previously noted, these disparities are largely driven by higher rates of underlying chronic conditions that increase risk of severe complications due to COVID-19 infection among these communities.
NC GIVES $175 MILLION TO HELP WITH HOUSING COSTS
Gov. Roy Cooper announced three programs that will provide $175 million to help North Carolinians with their rent and utility payments during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a news release, the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency will provide $94 million to support rental and utility payments to prevent evictions for those who have lost their source of income due to COVID-19. The state office will send the funds to local agencies, which will then work directly with residents to help them fill out an application and get their funds.
An additional $53 million will come from the federal Emergency Solutions Grant-Coronavirus program to help families experiencing or in danger of experiencing homelessness.
”Families in crisis don’t have time to spare, and our state agencies are coordinating a plan to make it easier for people to get the support they need,” said Cooper in a written statement.
In smaller communities, local governments will be given $28 million in federal funding through the North Carolina Department of Commerce to help residents pay rent and utility bills, and obtain access to internet, food and COVID-19 testing.
”Having a stable, safe place to live is fundamental to well-being and health. We continue to prioritize supporting people in meeting basic needs as part of our COVID response,” said NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen in a written statement.
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