Florida COVID weekly update: Five new virus subvariants slowly spreading across U.S.
What is the COVID-19 situation like in Florida?
As of Oct. 19, the state has added an average of 1,417 cases and 37 deaths per day in the past seven days, according to Miami Herald calculations of data published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC on Thursday announced it will now provide information regarding cases and deaths on a weekly basis, instead of offering daily updates.
Prior to this change, the state was averaging 20 fewer cases logged each day over the past three weeks, marking a stagnation of new cases after weeks of seeing decreasing trends.
COVID information shifting to weekly trends. What to know about finding the report
As of Thursday, Oct. 20, more than 14,741,000 people were fully vaccinated in Florida. The state has logged at least 7,182,390 cases and 81,907 deaths since the pandemic began in March 2020.
The number of cases is likely an undercount due to positive results from at-home COVID testing. The state only tracks resident cases and deaths, excluding nonresidents.
Here’s a breakdown of what to know this week:
Tracking COVID variants
Five new omicron subvariants — BQ.1, BQ.1.1, BF.7, BA.2.75, BA.2.75.2 — are slowly gaining traction, spreading throughout the United States. This is in addition to omicron’s two widespread subvariants, BA.5 and BA.4.6.
From Oct. 16 to Oct. 22, the BA.5 strain was the most dominant strain in the United States, accounting for 62.2% of cases. The BA.4.6 variant remained the second most dominant strain, accounting for 11.3% of cases, according to CDC data.
Here’s how many cases the newest omicron variants are accounting for, in order of dominance:
▪ BQ.1: 9.4%
▪ BQ.1.1: 7.2%
▪ BF.7: 6.7%
▪ BA.2.75: 1.6%
▪ BA.2.75.2: 1.3%
In the Southeast region, which includes Florida, BA.5 made up 62.6% of cases in the area and BA.4.6 accounted for 15.7%, the most dominant strain and second most.
COVID spread in South Florida
In the past week, Miami-Dade, Broward, Monroe, Palm Beach and Manatee counties remained at a low COVID-19 risk level. Under this level, the CDC recommends to get tested if you have symptoms and stay up-to-date with coronavirus vaccines.
Masks are only recommended for those with symptoms, a positive test or exposure to the virus.
South Florida and Manatee County COVID-19 Cases
In the period from Oct. 13 to Oct. 20, Florida has seen 9,904 new cases, according to Miami Herald calculations of the CDC’s Community Profile Report published Friday.
Here’s a breakdown of the new COVID cases in South Florida and Manatee County, according to the report.
▪ Miami-Dade reported 1,780 new resident cases in the week ending Oct. 20, reaching a total of 1,464,120. New cases were 21.59% fewer than those added in the previous week, and COVID-19 testing decreased by 10.74%.
▪ Broward reported 938 new resident cases, reaching a total of 736,005. New cases were 10.75% fewer than those added in the previous week, and COVID-19 testing decreased by 9.95%.
▪ Palm Beach reported 693 new resident cases, reaching a total of 453,611. New cases were 16.30% fewer than those added in the previous week, and COVID-19 testing decreased by 9.39%.
▪ Monroe reported 51 new resident cases, reaching a total of 21,947. New cases were 34.21% more than those added in the previous week, and COVID-19 testing increased by 3.35%.
▪ Manatee reported 195 new resident cases, reaching a total of 117,582. New cases were 16.07% more than those added in the previous week and COVID-19 testing decreased by 7.4%.
South Florida and Manatee County COVID deaths
Florida has added 252 deaths in the past week, according to Miami Herald calculations of the CDC’s Friday Community Profile Report.
It is unclear when these newly reported deaths occurred. The Community Profile Report updates Florida’s county tolls and rates about once every seven days.
As of Friday’s Community Profile Report, Florida had a rate of 381 cumulative deaths per 100,000 people since the start of the pandemic.
Here’s where death rates and tolls stand in South Florida and Manatee County, according to the CDC:
▪ Miami-Dade’s death toll is 11,827, an increase of 10 deaths from Friday’s report. That’s a rate of 435 cumulative deaths per 100,000 people since the beginning of the pandemic.
▪ Broward’s death toll is 6,433, an increase of 17. That’s a rate of 329 cumulative deaths per 100,000 people.
▪ Palm Beach’s death toll is 5,685, an increase of 15. That’s a rate of 380 cumulative deaths per 100,000 people.
▪ Monroe’s death toll is 132, no increase. The county would be at a death rate of 178 deaths per 100,000 people if its population were that large.
▪ Manatee’s death toll is 1,627, an increase of seven. Manatee has a rate of 403 cumulative deaths per 100,000 people.
Florida COVID-19 hospitalizations
There were 1,444 people hospitalized in Florida, with 167 in the ICU, according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services report on Tuesday.
Over the past three weeks, on average, 16 fewer people were hospitalized each day in Florida, showing a decrease in seven-day average hospital trends.
At that same time, on average, one fewer person was in the ICU with COVID each day in Florida, another decrease in trends.
During omicron’s January peak, more than 15,000 patients were hospitalized in Florida, according to HHS data.
Florida COVID-19 vaccinations
About 14,741,036 eligible Floridians — 68.6% of the state’s population — have completed the two-dose series of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines or have completed Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine, according to the CDC.
About 6,317,745 Floridians have received a booster, about 42.9% of the state’s fully vaccinated population.
Here’s how many people have received a booster in South Florida and Manatee County, according to the CDC:
▪ In Miami-Dade, about 843,610 people, or 35.6% of the fully vaccinated population, have received a booster.
▪ In Broward, about 595,119 people have received a booster, or 41.8% of the fully vaccinated population.
▪ In Palm Beach, about 465,488 people have received a booster, or 45.7% of the fully vaccinated population.
▪ In Monroe, about 24,547 people have received a booster, or 41.2% of the fully vaccinated population.
▪ In Manatee, about 120,110 people have received a booster, or 46.9% of the fully vaccinated population.
