Westmoreland County covid cases continue downward climb
Westmoreland County has added triple-digit new coronavirus cases for all but four days this month, but cases are on an overall downward trend.
The county had 141 coronavirus cases and three deaths added to its totals Wednesday, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
The county has averaged 106 cases per day over the last week, with a seven-day case total of 744. It’s the county’s lowest seven-day average since Nov. 11 when the average was 96. For comparison’s sake, the seven-day average a month ago was 269 and two months ago was 225.
Westmoreland County now has 24,368 cases and 579 deaths since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in March.
Hospitalizations have creeped down recently, after reporting 173 county residents hospitalized a month ago.
According to the state’s covid-19 dashboard, there are currently 148 coronavirus patients hospitalized in the county, down one from Tuesday’s 147. The county has 96 ventilators, with 26 in use, eight by covid-19 patients. There are eight coronavirus patients in Westmoreland County ICUs, with 25.6% of county ICU beds available.
Westmoreland County’s death rate per 100,000 people of 166 sits in the middle of the pack among the state’s 67 counties. Pike County has the lowest at 77, while Mifflin is at 325.1.
Mike Palm is a TribLive digital producer who also writes music reviews and features. A Westmoreland County native, he joined the Trib in 2001, where he spent years on the sports copy desk, including serving as night sports editor. He has been with the multimedia staff since 2013. He can be reached at mpalm@triblive.com.
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