FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The COVID-19 testing positivity rate has fallen below 5% in South Florida’s three counties — a level at which public health experts say the virus is considered under control — according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
Despite most key statistics dropping across Florida, the state still added 528 deaths from the weekend, bringing the seven-day average for deaths to 161 based on date of reported death, according to South Florida Sun Sentinel calculations of the CDC data.
The number of patients with the virus in Florida hospitals dropped to 2,913 on Sunday, the first time it was below 3,000 since Dec. 26. In Broward and Miami-Dade counties, 5.4% of hospital beds are used by COVID patients; in Palm Beach County, the rate was lower at 4.8%. Community transmission risks are at CDC-defined “medium” levels in South Florida’s three counties and 24 others across the state. Indian County’s risk level is low, according to the CDC.
To date, there have been 5,806,510 known cases of COVID-19 in Florida and at least 70,084 residents have died.
———
