COLUMBIA, S.C. — For the first time, more than 4,000 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed Sunday in South Carolina by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.
Additionally, health officials said the number of coronavirus patients hospitalized in South Carolina has reached a record high.
Along with 4,370 new positive tests, 14 more deaths were reported Sunday by DHEC. Health officials said the data reported includes some additional cases and deaths from Dec. 24 and Christmas Day.
Since testing began in March, 273,659 cases of the coronavirus and 4,764 deaths have been reported in South Carolina, data shows.
Sunday's data is based on 18,600 tests, and the percent positive was 23.5%, according to DHEC. That's an increase from Saturday's 21.6%, while the Dec. 18 rate of 26% was the highest in months.
The previous record high single-day total was set Dec. 18, with 3,648 new cases that day. Saturday's total of positive tests of COVID-19 was 3,111, and days earlier on Dec. 23, DHEC confirmed 3,599 new cases. Prior to the December surge, the previous single-day record was 2,343 cases confirmed on July 18.
Sunday marked the 41st consecutive day that more than 1,000 positive tests were confirmed in South Carolina, dating back to Nov. 16 when DHEC reported 981 new cases. Health officials reported more than 3,000 daily cases six times, and 23 of the past 24 days have seen more than 2,000 positive tests confirmed, the data shows.
On Saturday, 74 deaths were reported by DHEC. The most deaths reported on a single day in South Carolina occurred on July 25, when 80 deaths were confirmed, The New York Times reported.
Which counties were affected?
COVID-19 cases in the Upstate continue to surge and the area had the most new cases Sunday.
Greenville led all counties with 897 new COVID-19 cases, followed by 412 more in Spartanburg County, according to DHEC.
COVID-19 cases in the Midlands are below the Upstate's numbers, but also have surged in recent weeks, according to DHEC data. Richland County reported 228 new cases and Lexington County 308 new cases.
That brings the number of confirmed cases in Richland County to 23,381, while 14,348 positive tests have been reported in Lexington County.
Seven other counties had more than 100 positive test confirmed Sunday, according to DHEC. That includes Horry (260), Florence (248), York (209), Anderson (198), Charleston (148), Pickens (140), and Beaufort (122).
Of the 14 deaths reported Sunday — including one in Lexington County — all were elderly individuals (65 and older), according to DHEC. The remaining elderly deaths reported Sunday were in Greenville (4), Spartanburg (2), Barnwell, Beaufort, Cherokee, Chesterfield, Fairfield, Horry, and Pickens counties.
COVID-19 has taken the greatest toll on South Carolina's elderly residents.
The average age of all South Carolinians who have died from coronavirus complications is 75, and the vast majority of those who died — 87% — were over 60, data shows.
Overall, 311 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported in Richland County, while the death toll increased to 251 in Lexington County, according to DHEC.
How is COVID-19 trending in SC?
Daily case rates have nearly doubled in the past month and are currently the highest they've ever been, with 44 people per 100,000 testing positive for the novel coronavirus over the past 30 days.
COVID-19 hospitalizations have topped 1,000 statewide for the past three weeks, according to DHEC.
The number of people being tested across the state has shot up over the past 30 days, with an average of 222 tests per 100,000 individuals performed daily in the last month, a 40% increase from the month prior, data shows.
Overall, 3,571,920 tests have been conducted in South Carolina.
DHEC said it will not report daily COVID-19 numbers on New Year's Day. Data for that day will be provided in the following day's report.
How are hospitals being impacted?
The number of people hospitalized for COVID-19, which has been gradually climbing for the past month, reached a record high of 1,780 statewide Sunday.
Hospitalizations for COVID-19 previously peaked at 1,723 on July 23, according to DHEC.
Coronavirus patients made up 23% of all reported inpatients in South Carolina on Sunday, data shows.
Nearly 20.5% of COVID-19 patients, or 365 people, are in intensive care units, and nearly 9.9%, or 177 patients, are on ventilators.
Of the 13,210 hospital beds available in South Carolina, 7,729 inpatient beds or 70.4% are currently occupied, health officials said. There are currently 1,245 of 1,691 ICU beds occupied, or 73.6%, according to DHEC.
Total hospital bed occupancy and ICU bed occupancy has remained at nearly 80% since early December.
Last week, five Upstate health centers reported that their ICUs were stretched almost to capacity. A Prisma Health physician said Monday that the number of COVID-19 patients at the system's four Midlands hospitals had risen about 50% since Thanksgiving, but that they still had adequate capacity and resources.
In Richland County, 647 hospital beds are occupied (61.5%), and 405 are available, while 394 of 505 hospital beds (78%) in Lexington County are occupied, data shows.
ARE ALL CASES ACCOUNTED FOR?
Across the country, health experts said official case counts have likely under-counted the number of cases to large degrees. At one point, South Carolina officials estimated that 86% of those infected never got tested or diagnosed, but they no longer provide those estimates.
DHEC has also been recording probable cases and probable deaths. A probable case is someone who has not received a lab test result but has virus symptoms or a positive antibody test. A probable death is someone who has not gotten a lab test but whose death certificate lists COVID-19 as a cause of death or a contributing factor.
On Sunday, DHEC reported no new probable COVID-19 cases in the state, and two new probable deaths. That puts the total number of probable cases at 22,520 and total probable deaths at 391, data shows.
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