Weekly Update: State COVID-19 Positivity Rate Declines a Bit; Clinton at 24.3%
HARRISBURG, PA – Governor Tom Wolf and Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine on Monday released a weekly status update detailing the state’s mitigation efforts against COVID-19.The numbers show that the statewide percent positivity dropped from 16.2% the previous week to 15.8% most recently and with all 67 counties with substantial transmission status.
Every county in the state except for Sullivan County has a concerning percent positivity above five percent. This includes 20 counties with percent positivity at or above 20 percent. Among them are Clinton County with a rate of 24.3% and Lycoming with 22.4%; Centre County has a positivity rate of 14.5% through Dec. 17.
As of Dec. 17, the state has seen a seven-day case increase of 57,098 cases; the previous seven-day increase was 61,469 cases, indicating 4,371 fewer new cases across the state over the past week compared to the previous week.
“A decrease in percent positivity this week shows that we must continue to stay the course as we prevent the spread of this virus,” Gov. Wolf said. “As we approach a number of holidays, we need to put Pennsylvania on pause and continue to follow the time-limited mitigation efforts announced last week. We need all Pennsylvanians to follow these measures as part of their collective responsibility to protect one another and the health system.”
“While our case data shows some improvement, the continued strain COVID-19 is placing on the rate of hospitalizations and ventilator use serve as a reminder to us all of our role in protecting our health care system,” Secretary of Health Levine said. “We know that hospitalizations and deaths often lag after our case increases. Our hospitals are taxed and many locations have very few ICU beds available. We know COVID-19 does not discriminate and is affecting every county in the commonwealth. This virus knows no bounds and it is affecting all Pennsylvanians, no matter your race, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic status or whether you live a rural, suburban or urban area.”
