Over 6 million people in Pennsylvania (47.3% of residents) have at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and more than 3.8 million have been fully vaccinated (30.3% of residents), according to the data posted by the state on Thursday.

And locally, the state reported that 655,660 of Allegheny County residents (53.6%) had received at least one dose of a covid vaccine, while 401,823 individuals are fully covered (32.8%).

In Westmoreland County, the state reported that 150,456 of county residents (41.2%) had received at least one dose, with 102,168 individuals fully covered (27.9%).

Dr. Debra Bogen, the Allegheny County Health Department director, in her weekly press briefing on Wednesday stressed that people should get vaccinated. She also supported the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s updated guidelines allowing most people to forgo mask-wearing while outdoors, saying, “[It] is really encouraging news, and illustrates the importance of getting vaccinated.”

“It moves us closer to normalcy, but we need everyone to get vaccinated if we want complete normalcy,” she said. But added that people should continue to practice physical distancing when others are around, even while outside, while not everyone around is fully vaccinated.

Hospitalizations

Covid-related hospitalizations have been moving downward for several consecutive days on the state and county level.

The number of residents who are hospitalized statewide for the virus is 2,318, down 129 from Wednesday, according to state data. Hospitalizations in the state have fallen for the past eight days. In the state, there are currently 294 covid patients on ventilators and 522 in ICUs.

According to the state’s data, 222 Allegheny County residents are hospitalized for covid (down 11 from Wednesday), 80 of them are in intensive care units and 42 of them are on ventilator. Hospitalizations in Allegheny County have fallen for the past five days.

In Westmoreland County, 36 covid patients (down eight from Wednesday) are hospitalized with nine in the ICU and six on ventilators. Hospitalizations in Westmoreland have also fallen in the past days — falling from 46 patients in the hospital on Sunday.

Deaths

The state health department reported 50 additional covid-related deaths statewide, as the state’s total grew to 26,179. Of the newly reported deaths Thursday, 49 are from April and one is from December.

The Allegheny County Health Department added two new deaths — one person was in their 30s and another in their 70s. The death total stands at 1,865, according to the county. The state health department has recorded a total of 1,894 deaths for Allegheny County. No reason has been given for the discrepancy between the two health departments.

Westmoreland County saw no additional covid-related deaths — its total number of covid deaths in the county stands at 741.

Cases

The Allegheny County Health Department reported 214 additional covid-19 cases — 170 confirmed and 44 probable — on Thursday. The county’s total climbed to 96,884 since the pandemic began last March. The new coronavirus cases in the county — 98 male and 116 female — range in age from 7 months to 104 years, with a median age of 28 years.

Westmoreland County saw an additional 61 cases — 54 confirmed and seven probable. Its seven-day daily average of new cases fell to 80. The county’s overall total grew to 32,482.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 3,322 additional cases, with its total increasing to 1,146,398. The seven-day average of cases was 3,391, a 20.3% drop from last Thursday.

In the state, Philadelphia had the most cases added Wednesday with 467, followed by Berks (233), Allegheny (214) and Montgomery (211).

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