361 new coronavirus cases, 7 fatalities confirmed Easter morning

State health officials confirmed 361 new coronavirus cases Sunday, raising the total to 19,347 diagnoses.

Despite a net increase of six deaths, the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed seven deaths tied to the coronavirus after removing one fatality from its records overnight. Now 452 Floridians have died and 2,633 have been hospitalized after the department confirmed 26 more.

The update comes as Pope Francis offered a message of hope as Christians worldwide celebrate Easter from their homes, turning to television or the internet to watch from isolation.

South Florida is still the hardest-hit region of the state, making up 58% of the state’s confirmed cases. In Miami-Dade County, 6,826, up from 6,758 Saturday, have tested positive, including more than 4,000 in Miami alone.

In Broward County, 2,865 people, up from 2,844, have been diagnosed with COVID-19. However, Palm Beach County saw the most new confirmed cases of the three, adding 110 to reach 1,609.

Five of the new deaths came from Miami-Dade, which has the largest concentration of the state’s fatalities with 97. The final two deceased were Pasco and Pinellas county residents.

The disease, which is disproportionately more severe for the elderly and people with underlying medical conditions, has now infected 869 residents and staff of long-term care facilities, an increase of 22 since Saturday. Floridians aged 65 and older make up a quarter of the state’s cases but 55% of the hospitalizations and 82% of the fatalities.

Of the state’s total case count, 553 are non-Florida residents tested and isolated in the state. DOH does not include non-residents in its hospitalization or death toll.

The state is on its way to testing one in 100 Floridians. Including negative results, 183,222 individuals have been tested for the coronavirus.

But the department is now taking heat for how it reports pending cases, after a Miami Herald report. The state now shows that 1,297 people await their results, but that only includes testing coordinated by the department.

Below are the seven fatalities reported since Saturday and the death toll to date:

Miami-Dade: 97 total

— 68-year-old female who had contact with a known case

— 66-year-old female

— 75-year-old male

— 70-year-old male

— 86-year-old male

Pasco: 3 total

— 82-year-old male

Pinellas: 13 total

— 74-year-old male