Rhode Island Reports 325 New Coronavirus Cases; 18 Deaths

PROVIDENCE, RI — The Rhode Island Department of Health reported more 325 new cases of coronavirus Thursday, along with 18 deaths. The slight increase in daily case numbers comes the same day the Gov. Gina Raimondo is expected to announce the end of Rhode Island's stay-at-home order after May 8.

To date, there have been 10,530 cases of the virus in the state and 388 deaths. One of the criteria required to safely begin reopening the state is the continuation of the relative plateau of hospitalizations and cases without any sudden surges, Raimondo has said in the days leading up to the potential reopening.

The number of hospitalizations has continued to hold steady over the past weeks following a slight peak on April 28. As of Thursday, 318 people were hospitalized with COVID 19. Of these patients, 82 were in intensive care units and 56 were on ventilators. To date, 696 people have been discharged from the hospital.

The data shows that while the percent of cases spans all ages groups in Rhode Island, older residents continue to be the most affected, with more than half of hospitalizations in those over 60 years old and nearly 80 percent of deaths occurring in people aged 70 or older. Nearly a third of fatalities were people in their 80s alone.