Positive Testing Highest In 2 Years: Philly Health Commissioner

PHILADELPHIA — Health officials in Philadelphia Monday said the number of people testing positive in the city is the highest it's been in two years.

In the last two weeks, 15.9 percent of coronavirus tests in Philadelphia have come back positive. Philadelphia Department of Health officials said the positive testing percentage has not been this high since May 3, 2020. Additionally, Philadelphia is averaging 1,462 new cases of coronavirus per day over the last two weeks.

The previous highest positive testing percent was 35.6 percent the week of April 12, 2020. Officials said at that point, about 10,000 people were being tested per week. Now, more than 60,000 people are being tested this week, leading to more positive cases. However, the percent of tests coming back positive is lower now.

"The number of people testing positive for COVID is now far higher than at any point in the last two years," Health Commissioner Dr. Cheryl Bettigole said.

Full testing data is available online here.

As of Monday, 196,945 Philadelphians have been diagnosed with coronavirus, and 4,194 have succumbed to the virus.

Bettigole urged people to avoid gatherings amid the surge.

"We can beat this wave of COVID, but we need to get back to doing the things that kept us safe during previous waves: don’t gather indoors, wear your mask when around others, stay home even if you feel a tiny bit sick," she said. "The worst part of this surge should be over in a few weeks and we should soon have more tests available to let us test to ensure safety before gathering. But right now is a time for extreme caution."

She said emergency rooms are "packed" with people showing coronavirus symptoms.

The Philadelphia Department of Health reports 509 patients with coronavirus are being treated in Philadelphia hospitals, with a total of 45 on ventilators.

"The number of people testing positive for COVID is now far higher than at any point in the last two years, and emergency departments are packed with people with COVID symptoms," she said.

Bettigole urged people to get vaccinated and booster shots if they have not already

The total number of fully vaccinated Philadelphians is at least 957,492, and the number of Philadelphians with at least one dose of vaccine is at least 1,207,112.

77.1 percent of Philadelphia adults are fully vaccinated, and 97.2 percent of Philadelphia adults have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine; 23 percent of 5-to-11-year-olds in Philadelphia have received at least one vaccine dose. Among eligible Philadelphians ages 12 and older, 71.4 percent are fully vaccinated, and 90 percent have received at least one dose of vaccine.