MoCo Hits 14,283 Coronavirus Cases​​; No Date Set For Phase 3

ROCKVILLE, MD — Confirmed coronavirus cases in Montgomery County climbed by 79 on Wednesday, the Maryland Department of Health said, while the fatality count grew by three.

Montgomery County — which recorded its first positive infections on March 5 — now has 14,283 known cases, according to state health officials.

The local death toll now stands at 688. That figure doesn't include the 40 others whose deaths were linked to the virus, but never confirmed by a lab test.

All phases of reopening require the county to enforce social distancing guidelines and meet a number of public health benchmarks. According to the county's dashboard — which is updated daily at 2 p.m. —the jurisdiction has met eight of its 10 reopening benchmarks.

To meet them, health officials say the county must see 14 days of fewer cases, deaths, hospitalizations, and patients on a three-day rolling average. The data calculates a three-day rolling average because of potential outliers, like the occasional 24-hour spikes in the aforementioned metrics.

So far, the region has reached its 14-day benchmarks for:

• The number of new coronavirus-related cases
• The number of coronavirus-related hospitalizations
• The number of coronavirus-related ICU hospitalizations
• The rate at which acute beds are being used (goal is less than 70 percent)
• The rate at which ICU beds are being used (goal is less than 80 percent)
• The rate at which ventilators are being used (goal is less than 70 percent)
• The test positivity rate

It has not reached its benchmarks for:

• The number of coronavirus-related emergency room patients
  • Met 13 out of 14 days
• Tests administered in the last 30 days
  • 4 percent (goal is 5 percent)

In a weekly media briefing on Wednesday, County Executive Marc Elrich told reporters that he doesn't have a timeline or a date for Phase Three. The same happened for phases one and two.

"The moment I start talking about timelines, people think I've got a magical timeline for when things will snap into place," the Democrat said.

He went on to explain that the numbers must be lower for the county to move forward, but stopped short of giving any specifics.

"Getting to zero is probably not gonna be possible. But getting to the lowest number that we think is feasible is what we need to make sure there's not a reservoir of infection in the community that can be spread," he said. "There is a point, probably, where the combination of a very low number of cases in the community, as well as our emphasis on social distancing and wearing face coverings, is going to ensure that we don't spread the infections. That's our goal."

Addressing reporters at the briefing, he added: "I know I'm frustrating to deal with when you want a date, but I can't help it."

The county — which is home to roughly 1.1 million residents — continues to have the highest number of deaths in the state. It also has the second highest number of confirmed cases, after Prince George's County, which has 18,151, according to the latest figures.

Statewide, health officials are reporting 65,337 confirmed cases and 2,978 deaths. The probable death toll now stands at 130.

There are currently 544 hospitalized coronavirus patients. Of that, 213 are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).