HARRISBURG – The Pennsylvania Department of Health today confirmed that as of 12 a.m., Oct. 22, there were 2,063 additional positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the state-wide total to 188,360.
The department said that the number of cases today is among the highest numbers reported since the beginning of the pandemic.
However, it was noted that there was a faulty data file sent to the system by a laboratory earlier this week, which prevented some of the lab results from being properly reported.
Therefore, the department said, some of the cases being reported today should have been counted as part of the positive test results reported on Oct. 21.
According to DOH Web site, Clearfield County has had 423 (plus-16) total cases and seven deaths while 9,086 patients have tested negative for the virus. Of those cases, 351 are confirmed and 72 are probable.
The number of tests administered within the last seven days, between Oct. 15 and Oct. 21, is 231,483 with 10,375 positive cases. There were 37,114 test results reported to the department through 10 p.m., Oct. 21.
There are 8,592 total Pennsylvania deaths attributed to COVID-19, an increase of 30 new deaths. County-specific information and a state-wide map are available on the COVID-19 Data Dashboard.
There are 2,114 individuals who have a positive viral antigen test and are considered probable cases, and 648 individuals who have a positive serology test and either COVID-19 symptoms or a high-risk exposure.
There are 2,185,079 individuals who have tested negative state-wide to date. Of those who have tested positive, the age breakdown is as follows:
- Approximately 1 percent are ages 0-4;
- Nearly 2 percent are ages 5-12;
- Approximately 5 percent are ages 13-18;
- Nearly 14 percent are ages 19-24;
- Nearly 36 percent are ages 25-49;
- Approximately 21 percent are ages 50-64; and
- Approximately 21 percent are ages 65 or older.
Most of the patients hospitalized are ages 65 or older, and most of the deaths have occurred in patients 65 or older. More data is available here.
The department said it’s seeing significant increases in the number of COVID-19 cases among younger age groups, particularly 19- to 24-year-olds.
An alert was sent to healthcare providers about the changing COVID-19 case demographics, as there are more cases in younger age groups than in those 50-64 and 65-plus.
In nursing and personal care homes, there are 24,990 resident cases of COVID-19, and 5,436 cases among employees, for a total of 30,426 at 1,036 distinct facilities in 62 counties.
Out of the total deaths, 5,670 have occurred in residents from nursing or personal care facilities. A county breakdown can be found here.
It was also noted that approximately 11,846 of Pennsylvania’s total cases are among health care workers.
Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine reminds that mask-wearing is required in all businesses and whenever leaving home, and that consistent mask-wearing is critical to preventing the spread of COVID-19.