COVID Hospitalizations Double, New Cases Down In Bucks Co.

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Bucks County nearly doubled last week, while the number of newly reported cases dipped somewhat from the previous week.

Those were two of the six metrics pulled together in the state's Early Warning Monitoring System Dashboard, which aims to paint a comprehensive picture of the impact and status of the coronavirus in the community.

According to the dashboard, a daily average of 149 people were hospitalized with the coronavirus in Bucks County during the week of Dec. 11-17. That's up from 76.1 during the week of Dec. 4-10.

During that same time period, there were 2,771 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Bucks County, down from 3,297 the week before, according to the dashboard. The positivity rate of people who were tested for the coronavirus in Bucks County was a troubling 16.4 percent, but down slightly from the 17.8 percent the county reported the week before.

Medical experts would like to see the positivity rate at or below about 5 percent as a sign the virus is being brought under control in a community.

The number of hospitalized coronavirus patients who required ventilators last week also went up, from 7 to 18, according to the state data. The percentage of hospital emergency room visits that were due to COVID sat at 1 percent, down slightly from the previous week's 1.3 percent.

And the overall incidence rate for the county went down, from about 525 cases per 100,000 people to about 441.

Most of Bucks County's latest numbers on the dashboard tracked fairly closely with Pennsylvania's overall numbers. Statewide, new case numbers were down 4,371 last week. The state's incidence rate was about 445 per 100,000 people and test positivity rate was 15.8 percent, while hospitalizations and patients on ventilators both increased.

According to state data, Bucks County has had 25,619 confirmed cases and 1,390 probable cases of the coronavirus since the pandemic began. There have been 838 deaths from the virus in Bucks County, according to the state.

Like what you're reading? Sign up to get daily Patch emails and stay in the know on local news: https://patch.com/subscribe