VA Averaging Almost 1K New Cases; Hospital Reports PPE Difficulty

VIRGINIA — The Virginia Department of Health reported 996 new coronavirus cases Tuesday, about 50 cases higher than the total reported Monday. With the cumulative number of cases now at 79,371, Virginia is likely a day away from passing the 80,000 mark for positive coronavirus cases.

Health officials reported an additional 17 deaths Tuesday, lifting the cumulative total to 2,048. Sixty-six additional people were reported hospitalized due to COVID-19, increasing the total in the state to 7,267 hospitalizations.

While numbers can vary by day, the 7-day moving average of cases and other key measures can help health officials visualize trends. The July 21 average of new cases was 990, compared to 498 cases a month ago on June 21. The average has been rising since July 7 but remains below the peak average of 1,195 cases on May 31.

The average of positive nasal swab tests is also experiencing a slight uptick. The latest 7-day moving average of positive tests is 7.7 percent, about the same average seen in early June in the midst of a decline. But the statewide average slowly started to increase in early July. In all, 937,148 nasal swab tests have been completed in Virginia as of Tuesday.

As of Tuesday, there were 1,189 COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized statewide, up from 1,158 on Monday. The 7-day average of hospitalizations is trending upward after falling in much of June and stabilizing until around July 8. On July 10, current hospitalizations across Virginia were above 1,000 for the first time since mid-June. As of Tuesday, 10,235 coronavirus patients have been discharged from Virginia hospitals, up from 10,107 on Monday.

The COVID-19 hospitalizations include 127 patients on ventilators on Tuesday and 258 in the intensive care units, according to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association. Among all hospital patients, there are 624 of 3,047 available ventilators being used, or 20 percent.

On Tuesday, one hospital in Virginia was reporting difficulty obtaining personal protective equipment or other medical supplies. This is the first time since June 10 that a hospital reported difficulty obtaining PPE, according to the hospital association. On June 10, two hospitals were reporting difficulty, which was the first time since May 2 that hospitals reported troubles with securing PPE.

Northern Virginia reported 178 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, or 17.9 percent of the 996 new cases reported in Virginia. The Tidewater area of Virginia, which is seeing a surge in positive coronavirus cases, reported 414 new cases Tuesday, or 41.6 percent of the new cases in the state. Northern Virginia has close to double the population of the Tidewater area.

Here are the latest case updates for our coverage areas from Monday to Tuesday:

• Alexandria: 2,582 cases, 255 hospitalizations, 56 deaths; increase of 23 cases.
• Arlington County: 2,750 cases, 431 hospitalizations, 135 deaths; increase of 13 cases and one hospitalization.
• Fairfax County: 14,994 cases, 1,794 hospitalizations, 510 deaths; increase of 60 cases, one hospitalization and two deaths.
• Fairfax City: 73 cases, nine hospitalizations, seven deaths; no changes
• Falls Church: 54 cases, 10 hospitalizations, six deaths; decrease of one case and decrease of one death.
• Loudoun County: 4,695 cases, 324 hospitalizations, 106 deaths; increase of 25 cases, seven hospitalizations and three deaths.
• Manassas: 1,531 cases, 113 hospitalizations, 20 deaths; increase of one case and two hospitalizations.
• Manassas Park: 477 cases, 48 hospitalizations, seven deaths; increase of four cases.
• Prince William County: 8,240 cases, 728 hospitalizations, 164 deaths; increase of 50 cases, three hospitalizations and two deaths.
• Fredericksburg: 300 cases, 29 hospitalizations, no deaths; increase of our cases.
• Spotsylvania County: 1,168 cases, 86 hospitalizations, 33 deaths; increase of 14 cases, one hospitalization and one death.
• Stafford County: 1,140 cases, 110 hospitalizations, six deaths; increase of 12 cases.

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