Pennsylvania’s number of confirmed positive coronavirus cases has surpassed 10,000 people statewide, with Lehigh County adding more than 200 new cases since Friday.
On Saturday, state health officials announced 34 more deaths and 1,597 new positive COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania. Three of those deaths were in the Lehigh Valley.
Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said the statewide total of positive cases is now at 10,017 in 64 of the state’s 67 counties, with 136 deaths.
“There is no evidence the virus is slowing down,” she said.
The Lehigh Valley – Northampton and Lehigh counties – have a combined 18 deaths, according to the state’s figures.
As of Saturday, Lehigh County has 804 cases, a jump of 38 percent since Friday, and 7 deaths. Northampton County has 588 cases and 11 deaths.
State health officials have noted the prevalence of the virus in the eastern part of the state, around Philadelphia and its suburbs up through the Lehigh Valley and Poconos.
Most of the patients hospitalized are aged 65 or older, and most of the deaths have occurred in patients 65 or older. There have been no pediatric deaths to date.
To date, 60,013 people of those tested were negative for the virus.
In terms of equipment, Levine said the state has capacity right now for patients.
“We have enough beds. We have enough ICU beds. We have enough ventilators,” Levine said. “What we want to anticipate is the surge" in cases in the coming weeks.
On Friday, Gov. Tom Wolf said for the first time that all residents should wear a mask when out in public.
Levine previously said wearing a mask or bandanna could offer some protection against exposure to the coronavirus. She has stressed residents should not use the N-95 masks needed by health care professionals.
“There are no other actions anticipated at this time,” Levine said of the mask announcement. “We’re going to depend on Pennsylvanians to do the right thing.”
U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., has also advocated for wearing masks outside as a way to protect others from becoming infected.
A regularly updated projection of how bad the national COVID-19 crisis will get, from the University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, shows Pennsylvania has sufficient hospital beds available but a looming shortage of 87 intensive care beds. Based on new daily data, the institute now projects 2,023 Pennsylvanians will die from the virus over the next four months, up from a projection of 1,562 on April 1.
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