Florida coronavirus: State breaks daily record for new COVID-19 deaths

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – Florida recorded another 276 resident fatalities from the coronavirus on Tuesday, the highest daily death count on record.

The state’s report does not mention the exact date of death, therefore the deaths announced Tuesday may not be from the past 24 hours. Statewide, 8,553 Florida residents and 132 non-Florida residents have died of the virus. The combined toll stands at 8,685 fatalities, according to the latest report from the health department’s website.

Florida reported another 5,831 infections on Tuesday, bringing the total number of known cases to 542,792. This is higher than yesterday when the state reported 4,155 new cases. The state has tallied under 10,000 cases for 17 consecutive days. Florida had a record 15,300 new cases on July 12. The deadliest day was July 31 when the state recorded 257 deaths.

Statewide, 6,767 people are hospitalized with COVID-19. The total number of hospitalizations to date are 31,354.

Of the test results received Monday, 14.7% were positive. The state counted 9,843 positive results and 57,119 negative test results. This includes people who have been tested multiple times.

The percent positivity for new cases was 10.3% on Monday. Percent positivity for new cases is the number of people who test PCR (nose swabs) or antigen-positive for the first time divided by all the people tested that day. That does not include people who already tested positive once and have been re-tested to see if they’re still infected.

Floridians in the 25 to 34 age group account for the largest percentage of cases throughout the state. There are 103,246 cases in that age group, 19% of the state’s total. Of those cases, 1,880 have been hospitalized and 59 have died.