MIAMI — Florida reported 20,133 new COVID-19 cases, its second-highest single-day case count since the pandemic began last year, as the state continues to see record-breaking hospitalizations for the fourth consecutive day.
The number of cases reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday was just 1,550 short of Florida’s single-day record. On July 31, Florida reported 21,683 new COVID cases for the previous day.
Florida, which makes up about 6.5% of the U.S. population, accounted for nearly 22% of the country’s new cases on Wednesday, based on data the state is reporting to the CDC. The state’s seven-day average of new cases was 18,120, as of Aug. 4. The state also reported 84 new deaths.
The state’s surge of new cases and hospitalizations has pushed some Florida hospitals, including Memorial Healthcare System in South Broward, to temporarily pause elective surgeries to conserve staff and make room for infected patients.
COVID-19 HOSPITALIZATIONS IN FLORIDA
There were 12,888 people hospitalized for COVID-19 in Florida, breaking the state’s hospitalization record for the fourth day in a row, according to data from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services as of 1:16 p.m. Thursday.
About 2,577 people were in intensive care, or nearly 40 percent of the state’s ICU hospital beds.
January was the worst month of the Florida pandemic, with daily case counts routinely topping 10,000. That followed a surge in July 2020, when daily case counts and hospitalizations also topped 10,000. Hospitalizations were higher in July 2020 over January because there was no vaccine yet. The latter half of July 2021 and early August is Florida’s third COVID-19 surge.
Cumulatively, Florida has recorded at least 2,678,764 confirmed COVID-19 cases statewide and 39,403 deaths, according to the CDC.
Nearly 10 1/2 million eligible Floridians have completed the two-dose series of Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna, or have completed Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine. About 48.8% of Florida’s total population is fully vaccinated, according to federal data.
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(Miami Herald staff writer Ana Claudia Chacin contributed to this report.)
