Pennsylvania reports 825 new coronavirus cases, eclipses 50,000

Pennsylvania health officials will decide this week whether to share coronavirus-related data from nursing and personal care homes with the public, which is where the majority of covid-19 deaths are occurring.

About 67% of covid-19 deaths reported by the state have occurred in residents from such facilities. So far, the state has not provided the data breakdown for each facility.

“It is a balance between patient confidentiality and also the laws and regulations that govern our release of data versus the public’s right to know,” Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said Monday during a press briefing. “We will be making a decision about that this week.”

The state on Monday reported 14 new deaths from covid-19, bringing the statewide total to 2,458. Of those deaths, 1,646 have occurred in residents from 494 nursing and personal care homes in 44 of the state’s 67 counties.

As of Monday, such facilities were reporting 10,569 cases of covid-19 — 9,345 among residents and 1,224 among employees. That’s about 21% of the total number of Pennsylvanians that have tested positive for covid-19.

Levine reiterated that the state is not separating nursing and personal care home cases from other cases when deciding which counties will be allowed to re-open, despite the fact the majority of deaths have occurred in seniors.

Certain counties starting Friday will be moved from the “red” to “yellow” phase under the state’s color-coded system. Counties in the “yellow” phase will be able to operate with some eased restrictions.

“We are not going to separate nursing home cases from other cases in counties,” Levine said. “We are all interconnected.”

Levine said, “One section of our community, such as a nursing home or personal care home, impacts the general community and the community impacts that facility. The staff go back and forth. It’s very important to include those type of facilities among other congregate settings in the total count for a county.”

As of Monday, 50,092 Pennsylvanians had tested positive for covid-19, an increase of 825 cases from the previous day. Additionally, 195,498 people had tested negative for the virus. Positive cases of the virus have been confirmed in all 67 counties. Approximately 3,084 of the total cases are in healthcare workers.

Allegheny County saw no new deaths Monday from covid-19 while Westmoreland County saw one, bringing its death total to 31. Allegheny County reported 20 additional cases of the virus, bringing its total to 1,365 positive cases while Westmoreland County reported an additional two cases, bringing its positive cases to 403.

The majority of Westmoreland County’s deaths are nursing home related, officials said. According to the state, 23 of the 26 deaths are linked to nursing homes. County Coroner Ken Bacha, who is reporting 31 deaths, also said the majority of deaths are related to nursing homes. The state continues to report less deaths than the county.

Age breakdown of positive cases:

​0-4: ​< 1%
​5-12: ​< 1%
​13-18: ​1%
​19-24: 6%
​25-49: ​38%
​50-64: ​27%
​65+ ​27%

Age breakdown of hospitalizations:

0-29: ​2%
30-49: 5%
50-64: 10%
​65-79: 19%
​80+: 19%

The state has updated an interactive map that allows users to search for cases by county and ZIP code.