Kelly Hayes
Both Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties reported lower daily case numbers over the weekend as new coronavirus infections continue to decline in the area, according to Florida Department of Health data released Monday.
Hillsborough County confirmed 522 cases over the weekend, including 313 on Saturday and 209 on Sunday. The county also recorded seven new deaths and eight additional hospitalizations over the two days.
Since the start of the pandemic, the county has reported 109,174 cases of COVID-19, including 1,455 deaths.
The positivity rate for the county has stayed consistently below 10% this past week, peaking at 8.18% last Tuesday, but primarily staying around 7% other days. On Saturday, the county recorded a rate of 6.89% and on Sunday 7.83%, keeping in line with the week’s trend.
Pinellas County recorded 406 new cases of COVID-19 over the weekend — 168 on Saturday and 238 on Sunday. The county also saw 15 new deaths related to the virus over the weekend, bringing its death toll to 1,429. It also reported seven additional hospitalizations.
Pinellas has confirmed 65,191 cases since the start of the pandemic.
The county maintained a positivity rate between 5% to 6% in the past week, but reported a rate of 7.31% on Sunday.
For the past two weeks, both counties have maintained a rate below 10% — the threshold for which officials consider mass community spread.
Hillsborough County has been able to vaccinate 130,781 individuals, of whom 67,146 have received a second dose, according to the latest state vaccination data. Pinellas County is close behind, having vaccinated 127,230 individuals, including 65,780 who have completed the vaccine series.
In other COVID-19-related news for the area, more vaccines are headed to Tampa.
Tampa Family Health Centers will be one of 250 health centers across the country to receive vaccines through the Health Resources and Services Administration’s COVID-19 Vaccination Program, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor announced Monday.
