Pennsylvania reports 1,742 new coronavirus cases, 36 new deaths

Pennsylvania on Saturday reported 1,742 new coronavirus cases — a whopping 362-case jump from yesterday’s 1,380.

The state Department of Health reported 36 new deaths attributed to the coronavirus after posting nine on Friday. Wednesday’s total of 28 deaths was the highest of the week before today.

The total number of covid-19 deaths in Pennsylvania is 8,344.

The new data brings the total cases to 171,050. Officials said 1,114 are considered probable cases.

The state said there were 230,104 people tested from Oct. 3 to Oct. 9, with 8,204 positive cases — for a 3.6% positivity rate.

Out of the new cases, 81 — or 4.6% — are from Allegheny County. Philadelphia reported an increase of 151, accounting for nearly 8.7% of the state’s cases.

Officials have noted an increase in new cases from the 19- to 24-year-old age group.

For example, in Southwestern Pennsylvania, that age group only comprised 5% of the new cases in April, while accounting for 13% of the cases thus far in October.

“We know that congregation, especially in college and university settings, yields increased case counts. The mitigation efforts in place now are essential to flattening the curve and saving lives,” said Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine.

She urges people to continue to exercise caution when in public — mainly by maintaining social distance and wearing masks.

A little more than 2 million people in Pennsylvania have tested negative for the virus; in total nearly 2.2 million people have been tested for the virus in the state.

The positivity rate is 8.4%.

As of Saturday, 81% of people who tested positive have recovered from the virus, state officials said.

According to the Health Department, the most severe cases are seen in patients over the age of 65. This group accounts for the largest age demographic for both hospitalizations and deaths.

In nursing and personal care homes alone, there have been 23,831 cases in residents and 5,268 cases in employees.

There have been 5,551 deaths at nursing and personal care homes. These deaths account for 66.5% of the state’s total. About 1,006 nursing facilities have been affected by the virus.

Of the total, 11,272 coronavirus cases stem from health care workers.