62 deaths, 379 more COVID-19 cases reported Wednesday

After an extended weekend of dwindling deaths associated with COVID-19, state health officials on Wednesday reported 62 tied to the disease.

The deaths were confirmed in the last 24 hours, and those individuals did not necessarily die in that time. Fewer deaths are generally reported over the weekend, possibly exacerbating the spike from seven deaths reported Tuesday after the three-day Memorial Day weekend.

The Department of Health (DOH) has confirmed 2,400 deaths tied to the novel coronavirus, including 2,319 Floridians. An additional 379 COVID-19 cases were confirmed since the Tuesday report, raising the state’s total diagnoses to 52,634.

Nearly 10,000 people have been hospitalized with the virus in the state after an additional 157 residents and two non-residents were confirmed in hospitals. In total, 9,639 Floridians and 260 non-residents in the state have been hospitalized.

Since Monday’s report, 57 people in Miami-Dade County tested positive, raising the overall COVID-19 caseload there to 17,225 people. Of the 62 deaths statewide, 22 were tied to the county, raising its death toll to 655.

Broward County registered 26 new cases, raising its total to 6,825 and the death toll rose to 327 after five new people were confirmed dead. Palm Beach County now has 5,455 cases after DOH showed 26 new cases and five deaths, now with 331 total.

Six other counties have more than 1,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases including Hillsborough with 1,995, Orange with 1,877, Lee with 1,767, Duval with 1,507, Collier with 1,334 and Pinellas with 1,205. Manatee County could soon become the tenth county to reach that threshold, currently with 996 cases.

After peaking at 77,936 people tested in one day on May 19, the number of incoming results has continued to decline since. Only 15,854 people were tested Tuesday, raising the total count to 935,271.

According to data released by the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living, it will cost $42.3 million to conduct COVID-19 testing in every Florida nursing home and assisted living facility.

As Gov. Ron DeSantis has made protecting nursing homes a continuing focus of his reopening plan, 1,131 residents of long-term care facilities have died, an increase of 42 since Tuesday. However, when accounting for population, that puts Florida behind most of the Northeast, Louisiana, Illinois and other states in long-term care deaths.

A total of 73,312 individuals live in Florida nursing homes, which employ 95,390 workers, and 84,671 live in assisted living communities, which employ 34,142 staff.

One independent model aggregated by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows Florida could see a 40% increase in the total number of deaths throughout the month of August in a second COVID-19 wave possibly already in its early stages. That model suggests the state could reach 76 deaths per day by mid-August and 7,957 total by Sept. 1.

The Republican National Convention may or may not be up for a move over coronavirus restrictions. DeSantis joined other Florida Republicans Tuesday calling for the convention to pack its bags for the Sunshine State.

“Florida would love to have the RNC. Heck, I’m a Republican, it would be good for us to have the DNC,” he said, citing the “major economic impact of events like that.”

President Donald Trump opened Memorial Day expressing frustration with North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat who the president contends is “unable to guarantee” coronavirus physical-distancing requirements will be lifted before the Republican convention, scheduled for Aug. 24 to Aug. 27.