New covid cases for Allegheny, Westmoreland, Pa. remain above 7-day average

Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, as well as Pennsylvania, all reported new coronavirus cases higher than their seven-day averages on Wednesday.

Allegheny added 285 cases, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health, 38 higher than its seven-day average of 247. Westmoreland’s 73 additional cases are above its average of 65, while Pennsylvania’s Wednesday addition of 3,004 cases was 434 higher than its average of 2,570.

The new cases brought Allegheny’s total to 80,645, while Westmoreland rose to 27,824 and Pennsylvania to 973,721.

Philadelphia had the most newly reported cases with 371, followed by Allegheny, Bucks (196), Montgomery (176) and Lancaster (153).

Allegheny has the highest total of covid cases among nursing and personal care home residents, with 5,495 in its 161 facilities. It’s also highest in the state in cases among employees at those facilities with 2,170. (Delaware is next highest at 890 cases among employees.)

Westmoreland ranks 10th among resident cases at 2,090 and 12th among employees with 321.

Deaths

Pennsylvania reported 37 additional deaths, raising its total to 24,689. Of those 37 deaths newly reported Wednesday, 33 are from March, two are from February and two are from December.

Allegheny County’s death total through Wednesday grew by six to 1,738, according to the county’s health department. The deaths ranged from Feb. 20 to March 9, with one person in their 60s, two in their 80s and three in their 90s.

The state added four more deaths to its total for Allegheny County, which now stands at 1,774. The discrepancy between the two health departments has been attributed to different reporting methods.

Westmoreland County added two deaths for a total of 691. That total is 12th highest in the state. Philadelphia has recorded the most, at 3,220, followed by Allegheny (1,774), Montgomery (1,585), Delaware (1,268) and Bucks (1,160), according to the state health department.

Beaver County added two deaths, while Armstrong and Fayette saw one more apiece.

According to state data, Allegheny County has 991 deaths associated with nursing and personal care homes, an increase of three from Tuesday. Westmoreland County’s total grew by four, up to 288.

Deaths in the state have been on a downward trend since hitting a high point of 6,357 in November. That spike was followed by 4,667 in January, 1,796 in February and 371 so far in March. Those numbers are likely to slightly change as data continues to trickle in from around the state to the health department.

Hospitalizations

Pennsylvania’s covid-19 hospitalizations rose for the third straight day, adding 11 on Wednesday to bring the total to 1,500. The state hit a four-month low on Sunday when there were only 1,433 covid patients in the hospital. Still, it’s a far cry from the state’s peak of 6,346 on Dec. 16. The state has 153 covid patients on ventilators and 284 in the ICU.

Allegheny County added 12 more hospitalizations, as its total grew to 147. There are 15 covid patients on ventilators, with 38 in the ICU.

Westmoreland County also saw one additional covid hospitalization to increase its total to 117, with four patients in the ICU and two on ventilators.

Vaccinations

More than 12% of Allegheny County residents (151,267) are fully vaccinated, according to data from the state health department. Another 170,209 are partially vaccinated in the county.

Westmoreland County is 10.95% fully vaccinated (39,974), with 42,493 partially vaccinated.

In Pennsylvania, more than 1.5 million people, or 11.85% of the state, is fully vaccinated.

Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam issued an order Monday saying vaccine providers across the state should have all appointments for people in Phase 1A scheduled by the end of March. Phase 1A includes health care workers, long-term care residents, anyone over the age of 65 and those aged 16 to 64 with certain health conditions.