Mississippi reports another record in COVID-19 cases Tuesday, 21 in Warren County

Mississippi saw another record number of new COVID-19 cases Tuesday. Hospitalizations also hit a new high.

In Warren County, the Mississippi State Department of Health reports a 21 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths Tuesday. The cumulative number of cases in the county to date is 748, and the county’s death toll is 22.

Statewide, MSDH reports 1,635 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, bringing the total cumulative confirmed cases in Mississippi to 45,524.

MSDH reports Tuesday that another 31 Mississippians died of COVID-19 statewide, bringing the total number of deaths in the state to 1,389. The state’s rate of deaths to confirmed cases is about 3.1%, a rate that has been falling very slowly for a few weeks.

The numbers of deaths can lag new cases by two weeks or more, which may be one reason deaths in the state had not risen dramatically until July 7 when 44 deaths were reported. In addition, most new cases are seen in younger people recently, and they are more likely to survive the virus than those 65 and older. By far, the age group reporting the most cases in Mississippi are young people from 18 to 29 years old.

MSDH reported deaths in the following counties Tuesday:

Five confirmed COVID-19 related deaths occurred between June 30 and July 12, identified from death certificate reports. The additional deaths were reported in the following counties:

Deaths and new cases were reported as of 6 p.m. Monday, July 20. MSDH usually reports new statistics on the COVID-19 coronavirus each day based on the previous day’s testing and death reports.

The total number of outbreaks in long-term care facilities Tuesday is 154. About 47.4%, or 658, of the state’s total deaths were people in long-term care facilities.

In Warren County as of Friday, July 17, MSDH reported that Shady Lawn Health and Rehabilitation and The Bluffs Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center are under investigation for active COVID-19 outbreaks. Shady Lawn has two COVID-19 cases among staff, three cases among residents and one resident death, The Bluffs has three cases among staff. Deaths in the county include nine residents of Heritage House Nursing Center, which is no longer under investigation.

MSDH has estimated the number of people who can be presumed recovered from COVID-19 in Mississippi. That number is 30,315 through Sunday, July 19. This figure is updated weekly. It represents about 66.6% of the cumulative 45,524 cases reported as of Tuesday, July 21.

The number of cases in Warren County three weeks ago, Tuesday, June 30, was 425, therefore the estimated number of people presumed recovered in the county is 403, or about 53.9% of the 748 cumulative cases reported Tuesday, July 21. The county has an estimated 323 active cases.

These estimates are based on MSDH’s guidelines for calculating estimated recoveries when hospitalizations are not known, using the number of cases 21 days ago, less known outcomes (deaths).

The primary metric concerning state health officials are the numbers of people hospitalized, and that number has been steadily rising with new cases. On June 6, the number of Mississippians hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19 was at a low of 358. Since then, hospitalizations have nearly tripled. Last week, health officials began warning repeatedly that some hospitals were running out of ICU beds.

The number of Mississippians hospitalized for the virus as of 6 p.m. Monday, July 20, is 1,154, another record high. The number includes 943 with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 211 people with suspected but unconfirmed cases. Of those with confirmed infections, 298 were critically ill and in intensive care units and 140 were on ventilators.

Source; MSDH

For additional information, visit the MSDH website.