The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 5,725 additional coronavirus cases on Friday, the highest daily total in a week. The seven-day total 32,277 cases calculates to a daily average of 4,611 cases per day, down 7% from a week ago, and up 7% over the last 30 days.
To date, there have been 1,502,124 infections statewide.
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Childhood Infections
An updated weekly report on coronavirus infections in children shows that Pennsylvania is reigning in the disproportionality high rates of infections in the school-age population — those age 5 through 18.
The numbers are reported separately for preschool and school-age populations in each county.
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A Morning Call analysis of the report using U.S. Census Bureau population estimates by age group for comparison shows that, statewide, the ratio of school-age infections to those in the adult population was highest in the week ending Sep. 21, with children contracting the virus 1.55 times more often than adults. For the week ending Oct. 12, the ratio fell to 1.2.
The rates were even more lopsided in the Lehigh Valley. The Sep. 21 ratio for Lehigh County was 1.85 school-age infections for each adult one. The rate fell to 1.2 this week. In Northampton County, the ratio fell from 2.55 on Sep. 21 to 1.47 on Oct. 5. It rose slightly this week to 1.57 school-age infections for each adult one. Although the overall rates of infection fell, they fell faster for adults than children.
For the week ending Oct. 12, childhood coronavirus case rates were higher than those for adults in 44 out of the state’s 67 counties. The rates for all children from birth through age 18 were higher in 35 counties.
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Deaths
Overall: 82 compared with 108 on Thursday. The seven-day moving average of deaths per day is 73, compared with 67.1 a week ago, an increase of 9% in the last seven days.
Senior Care: No deaths reported Friday from weekly surveys, leaving the total at 14,229, accounting for 46.8% of the state’s 30,418 deaths.
Vaccinations
The latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show:
There are 7.55 million fully vaccinated people in Pennsylvania, accounting for 59% of the population. An additional 2.01 million people are in need of their follow-up shot. In total, 16.77 million shots have been put into the arms of 9.56 million people, or 74.7% of the state’s residents.
Included in those statewide numbers are 420,009 Lehigh Valley residents who are fully vaccinated, accounting for 62.3% of the local population. In total, 532,602 locals have received 805,030 shots in the arm, accounting for 79% of the Valley’s population.
An average of 41,096 vaccinations are being administered to Pennsylvania residents each day, according to CDC data. Of those, 21,066 are first doses. The number of total vaccinations per day is up 68.5% over the last 30 days. The number of first doses being given per day is up 73.7% over the last 30 days.
Hospitalizations
There were 2,946 people hospitalized as of midday Friday compared with 2,978 Thursday. Of those, 687 were in intensive care, and 384 were on ventilators.
Statewide hospitalizations have increased 2.7% over the last week, and are up 33.7% in the last 30 days.
Hospitals in the five-county region including Lehigh, Northampton, Carbon, Schuylkill and Monroe report 247 patients, with 48 in intensive care, and 18 on ventilators.
Regional hospitalizations have been steady over the last week, and are up 12.6% in the last 30 days.
Testing
There were 12,210 test results reported Friday, with 34.6% of them positive, compared with 31% on Thursday.
The overall positive test rate is 18.2% since the state’s first cases were reported March 6 of last year.
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Lehigh Valley
Cases: 140 additional case reports, with 76 in Lehigh County, 64 in Northampton County. That brings the total to 90,968.
Deaths: No new deaths Friday, compared with six the day before. That leaves the total at 1,700 (922 in Lehigh, and 778 in Northampton).
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