Pennsylvania reports 680 new coronavirus cases, 73 deaths

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 73 new covid-19 deaths and 680 new cases Saturday.

That brings the state’s total case count to 71,415, with 5,537 deaths.

The state considers an additional 616 patients as probable cases, which have not confirmed.

Nursing and personal care homes account for 15,376 cases among residents and 2,650 among employees. There have been 3,535 coronavirus deaths and nursing and personal care homes.

The virus has been found in 607 nursing facilities, up four from Friday.

Health care workers account for 5,280 coronavius cases.

Currently, 57 counties are in the yellow phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s three-tiered reopening plan.

The first 18 counties moved to the green phase yesterday. Eight additional counties are scheduled to move to the yellow phase on Friday, while 17 counties — including Allegheny and Westmoreland — will move to the green phase the same day.

“As Pennsylvania continues to move forward in the process to reopen, we need to remember that the threat from COVID-19 has not gone away,” Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said in a statement. “As counties move into the yellow and green phases, we must take personal responsibility to protect others.”