Kelly Hayes
While cases of COVID-19 are continuing to spread at high levels across Tampa Bay, the area saw a drop in the number of new cases this past week.
From Jan. 14 through Jan. 20, Hillsborough County reported 18,219 cases of COVID-19, according to the latest data released by the Florida Department of Health. That’s about 6,000 fewer cases than the county reported in the week prior, when it saw 24,400 instances of COVID-19.
Overall, case numbers are way up from mid-December, when the county reported just above 1,000 cases.
Since the pandemic’s start, Hillsborough County has reported 333,254 cases of COVID-19.
The high caseload seen in the past week was accompanied by a countywide positivity rate of 28.1%. For reference, a 10% positivity rate is considered the threshold for community spread by researchers. The week prior, the county saw a rate of 30.1%.
As for vaccination numbers, 4,208 individuals got the jab in Hillsborough County this week. That’s about 2,000 fewer individuals than the week before. The county’s vaccination rate is now 68%.
Neighboring Pinellas County also is reporting a dip in COVID-19 cases, confirming 11,779 cases in the last week. That’s down from the 14,316 new cases the region saw the week prior. The county’s positivity rate also is slightly lower, coming in at 26.8% this past week, down from 27.5% the week prior.
For comparison, in mid-December, the county reported about 500 new weekly cases and a positivity rate of only 2.8%.
Pinellas County has confirmed 183,159 cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
The report also showed 1,637 people in Pinellas County got vaccinated within the last week. With the addition of the newly vaccinated group, 648,151 people have received a COVID-19 vaccine. That’s 68% of the county’s population.
Pasco County reported 7,093 new weekly cases and a positivity rate of 30.1%. So far, Pasco County has recorded 106,816 cases of COVID-19.
In the week prior, Pasco County reported 8,230 COVID-19 cases and a 30.8% positivity rate.
The county has a vaccination rate of 67% after 1,162 more people got vaccinated in the last week.
