Coronavirus Hospitalizations Above 2,700 In Virginia

VIRGINIA — On the second last day of 2020, 4,048 new coronavirus cases were reported by the Virginia Department of Health.

There have been eight days with cases above 4,000 in December: Dec. 9, 12, 21, 23, 24, 25, 29 and 30. The seven-day average of daily cases is 3,602 as of Wednesday, Dec. 30. Virginia's positive average of PCR tests stands at 12.7 percent as of Dec. 26. There's a seven-day average of 25,826 testing encounters reported in the commonwealth.

Northern Virginia had 862 new cases on Wednesday, below the southwest region's 917 and above the northwest region's 844, central region's 724, and eastern region's 701. Regional positive averages as of Dec. 26 are 16.2 percent in the southwest region, 14.8 percent in the eastern region, 12.4 percent in the northwest region, 11.8 percent in the northern region and 10.3 percent in the central region.

There are 2,707 current COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Virginia, up nine from Tuesday. This includes 553 in the intensive care units and 330 on ventilators. COVID-19 patients represent a portion of the 13,270 hospital beds occupied. Virginia's hospitals as a whole have 16,476 staffed beds.

According to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, 1,033 of 3,001 available ventilators are in use among all hospital patients in Virginia, representing 34 percent capacity. ICU occupancy stands at 82 percent, compared to the 2019 average of 67 percent. No hospitals have reported difficulty obtaining personal protective equipment within 72 hours since Sept. 18.

Vaccinations are being tracked by the VDH as the first priority group gets access — health care workers and long-term care facility residents and staff. As of Wednesday, 54,295 vaccine doses have been administered in Virginia. No one has received the second dose yet, as Pfizer's doses should be taken 21 days apart and Moderna's doses should be 28 days apart. The first health care workers began to get vaccines on Dec. 15; long-term care facility vaccinations begin during the week of Dec. 28.

Below are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area from Tuesday to Wednesday:

• Alexandria: 7,231 cases, 430 hospitalizations, 87 deaths; increase of 68 cases
• Arlington County: 8,786 cases, 655 hospitalizations, 181 deaths; increase of 155 cases, eight hospitalizations and four deaths
• Fairfax County: 43,434 cases, 2,926 hospitalizations, 679 deaths; increase of 327 cases, 26 hospitalizations and four deaths
• Fairfax City: 304 cases, 25 hospitalizations, 10 deaths; increase of six cases
• Falls Church: 174 cases, 17 hospitalizations, six deaths; increase of one case
• Loudoun County: 13,996 cases, 643 hospitalizations, 158 deaths; increase of 148 cases, four hospitalizations and two deaths
• Manassas: 2,867 cases, 147 hospitalizations, 30 deaths; increase of 17 cases
• Manassas Park: 926 cases, 62 hospitalizations, eight deaths; increase of six cases
• Prince William County: 25,247 cases, 1,218 hospitalizations, 256 deaths; increase of 190 cases, four hospitalizations and five deaths
• Fredericksburg: 1,021 cases, 65 hospitalizations, nine deaths; increase of 15 cases
• Spotsylvania County: 4,678 cases, 211 hospitalizations, 67 deaths; increase of 71 cases and one hospitalization
• Stafford County: 5,099 cases, 225 hospitalizations, 24 deaths; increase of 63 cases and one hospitalization