Montgomery Reports 474 New COVID-19 Cases, 7 Deaths

BETHESDA, MD — Montgomery County registered 474 new COVID-19 infections overnight, up from 353 on Wednesday, data released by the Maryland Department of Health showed.

Thursday's addition pushes the total number of cases since the pandemic began to 52,842.

In the past 24 hours, seven more people have died from the virus. That brings the local death toll to 1,167.

Another 44 people, health officials believe, had the disease but died before ever getting tested. For now, they are considered "probable deaths." They won't be added to the official fatality count until confirmatory lab tests are performed.

The county — which is home to roughly 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 61,516, according to the latest figures.

Across Maryland, there have been 317,815 coronavirus cases, 6,277 confirmed deaths, and 172 "probable deaths." Of the 1,843 patients being hospitalized for the disease statewide, 425 are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).