Virginia Reports Nearly 10K New PCR Tests For Coronavirus

VIRGINIA — The Virginia Department of Health reported 763 new cases of the coronavirus and 33 new deaths Wednesday, bringing the cumulative totals to 32,908 cases and 1,074 deaths. There were 75 more hospitalizations reported, bringing the cumulative total to 3,979.

The Northern Virginia region accounted for 587 of the 763 new cases, or 76.9 percent. These include 295 new cases in Prince William County, 143 in Fairfax County, 52 in Loudoun County, 40 in Arlington County, 33 in Alexandria, 19 in Manassas and five in Manassas Park. There were no new cases in Falls Church or Fairfax City.

The state health department is supporting a number of large-scale testing events in Northern Virginia. Drive-thru and walk-up testing events were held in Prince William County on May 18 and 19, and a Leesburg event was planned for May 20. Free community testing will be held on May 23 and 24 in Annandale and Bailey's Crossroads, two areas of Fairfax County with high cases numbers. Details on a May 25 event with 3,000 tests in Alexandria will be announced, Mayor Justin Wilson wrote Monday.

Free community testing on the Eastern Shore on May 8 and 9 resulted in 49 positive results, 1,290 negative results and 41 invalid or inconclusive results.

Statewide, there was an increase of nearly 10,000 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests since Tuesday, a number Gov. Ralph Northam previously named as a goal for starting to lift restrictions. When including antibody testing, the increase in testing was 10,208 from Tuesday to Wednesday. Looking at PCR tests only, the increase was 9,782.

Last week, the state health department started reporting PCR tests separate from total testing numbers, which include antibody testing. PCR testing is a viral test to determine a current infection through respiratory samples. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, antibody testing may not always find antibodies in an individual with a current infection, depending on the timing of testing and infection date.

"Antibody tests should not be used to diagnose someone as being currently sick with COVID-19," the CDC states. "To see if you have a current infection, you need a viral test, which checks respiratory samples, such as a swab from inside your nose."

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As of Wednesday, 210,965 total PCR tests had been conducted in Virginia, representing a 14.5 percent 7-day positivity rate. When including antibody and PCR tests, there have been 235,199 tests completed, representing a 13.1 positivity rate.

The Virginia Department of Health said antibody testing increased in the past three weeks but make up less than nine percent of all tests.

The trend of positive tests is one the metrics Northam evaluates for reopening phases. When delaying phase one for Northern Virginia, the governor cited a higher positive rate among Northern Virginia's nine jurisdictions as compared to the state's 133 localities as a whole.

The 7-day percent positivity (PCR tests) for health districts in Northern Virginia and statewide as of Tuesday are:

• Alexandria: 26.6 percent; 5,171 tests
• Arlington: 22.3 percent; 6,571 tests
• Fairfax (Fairfax County, Falls Church, Fairfax City): 25.2 percent; 30,135 tests
• Loudoun: 17.8 percent; 7,680 tests
• Prince William Prince William County, Manassas, Manassas Park): 27.3 percent; 16,601 tests
• Virginia: 14.5 percent; 210,965 tests

COVID-19 hospitalizations and hospital resource use statewide remain stable with small day-to-day fluctuations. The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association reported 1,536 people with pending or confirmed coronavirus test results currently hospitalized, up from 1,497 Tuesday. A total of 4,523 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from hospitals, up from 4,271 on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, 202 COVID-19 patients were using ventilators, up from 199 on Monday. However, the 638 total hospital patients using ventilators remains unchanged. The ventilator use among 2,947 available ventilators represents 22-percent use in Virginia. No hospitals are experiencing difficulty obtaining or restocking protective gear or other medical supplies in the next 72 hours.

Virginia's top five ZIP codes for cases as of Tuesday are all in Northern Virginia:

• 22191, Prince William County: 948 of 3,258 tested
• 22193, Prince William County: 868 of 3,095 tested
• 20110, Manassas/Prince William County: 776 of 1,991 tested
• 22003, Fairfax County: 727 of 2,228 tested
• 22204, Arlington County: 689 of 2,168 tested

Here are the latest case updates for our coverage areas as of Wednesday:

• Alexandria: 1,577 cases, 169 hospitalizations, 34 deaths; increase of 33 cases and one hospitalization
• Arlington County: 1,728 cases, 334 hospitalizations, 81 deaths; increase of 40 cases, three hospitalizations and two deaths
• Fairfax County: 8,163 cases, 1,133 hospitalizations, 302 deaths; increase of 143 cases, 20 hospitalizations and 10 deaths
• Fairfax City: 47 cases, six hospitalizations, three deaths; no change
• Falls Church: 44 cases, nine hospitalizations, five deaths; increase of one death
• Loudoun County: 1,579 cases, 146 hospitalizations, 49 deaths; increase of 52 cases, six hospitalizations and one death
• Manassas: 699 cases, 51 hospitalizations, six deaths; increase of 19 cases, three hospitalizations and one death
• Manassas Park: 207 cases, 27 hospitalizations, three deaths; increase of five cases and one hospitalization
• Prince William County: 4054 cases, 384 hospitalizations, 79 deaths; increase of 295 cases, 29 hospitalizations and nine deaths
• Fredericksburg: 101 cases, 14 hospitalizations, no deaths; no change
• Spotsylvania County: 351 cases, 30 hospitalizations, four deaths; increase of 12 cases
• Stafford County: 514 cases, 63 hospitalizations, four deaths; increase of 13 cases and two hospitalizations

SEE ALSO:

• VA Child Recovering From Rare Coronavirus-Linked Condition
• NoVA's 'Islands Of Disadvantage' At Greatest Risk Of Coronavirus
• Northam To Reopen Virginia Beach In Time For Memorial Day Weekend
• Ventilator Use For Virginia Coronavirus Patients Remains Steady