Coronavirus: State complies with CDC change in reporting

ELIZABETHTOWN — The state Department of Health and Human Services made adjustments to its reporting on Friday, one dictated by the CDC and another an internal modification.

Hospitalization reports now are for the entire length of stay, rather than only when under isolation precautions that was typically a maximum of 21 days.

Those changes, respectively, led to the hospitalizations number rising by 144 and the numbers for tests, cases and deaths to be only for 10 hours rather than 24. DHHS described the changes as an artificial increase for hospitalizations and an artificial decrease for tests, cases and deaths.

In Bladen County, four people are hospitalized among 74 active cases. There have been 1,081 recoveries and 19 have died. The eight cases added Friday push the total since the pandemic began to 1,174.

In the twice-a-week update for outbreaks and clusters, there was no change for Bladen County. Emereau: Bladen Charter School remains listed for three staff and two children.

Emereau, as of Friday night, remained on schedule to return to face-to-face instruction on Monday.

The state Department of Health and Human Services postal ZIP code report lists 368 cases in Elizabethtown and White Lake since the pandemic began; 225 in Bladenboro; 142 in East Arcadia; 129 in Clarkton; 78 in White Oak; 70 in Tar Heel; 28 in Kelly; 24 in Council; and 10 in Dublin.

There are nine fatalities listed for the ZIP in Elizabethtown and White Oak. There have been two each in East Arcadia and Dublin, and one each in Bladenboro, Tar Heel, White Oak and Kelly. The other two are not linked to a ZIP code unique to Bladen County.

Friday’s totals from the state included:

• 4,720 deaths, up 14 from Thursday’s noon report.

• 305,233 cases, up 1,779.

• 1,423 hospitalized, up 144.

• 4,522,336 tests, up 35,812.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health conditions, the highly contagious virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal.

In Bladen County, the ages 25-49 category has had 40 percent of the cases, 50-64 has 24 percent, 18-24 has 12 percent, 17-and-under has 12 percent, 65-74 has 8 percent and 75-or-older has 5 percent. Of the fatalities, ages 75-and-older has made up 63 percent, 65-74 has 21 percent, 50-64 has 11 percent and 25-49 has 5 percent.

Statewide, the ages 25-49 category has had 40 percent of the cases, 50-64 has 19 percent, 18-24 has 16 percent, 17-and-under has 11 percent, 65-74 has 8 percent and 75-or-older has 7 percent. Of the fatalities, ages 75-and-older has made up 58 percent, 65-74 has 23 percent, 50-64 has 14 percent and 25-49 has 4 percent.

In adjacent counties to Bladen, there have been 325 deaths and 21,563 cases. Cumberland has 108 deaths and 8,048 cases; Robeson has 102 deaths and 6,631 cases; Columbus has 67 deaths and 2,130 cases; Sampson has 31 deaths and 3,170 cases; and Pender has 17 deaths and 1,584 cases.

Congregate living settings in North Carolina have totaled 2,405 deaths and 32,371 positive cases. Outbreaks have been identified and are active at 236 nursing homes, 125 residential care facilities, 51 correctional institutions and nine other facilities. Of those, seven are in Robeson, five in Cumberland, four each in Sampson and Pender, and three in Columbus.

Robeson and Cumberland each have two clusters; Bladen, Sampson and Columbus each have one.

With 97 percent of the state’s hospitals reporting, DHHS says there is availability of 73 percent of the ventilators, 20 percent of the intensive care unit beds and 24 percent of all hospital beds.

In the personal protective equipment category, all categories are at least five months.

A combined 13 metropolitan counties have the state’s three largest cities and account for 39 percent of the deaths (1,841) and 46 percent of the cases (140,406).

In the Charlotte area, Mecklenburg County has 412 deaths and 37,627 positive cases, Gaston County has 157 deaths and 8,650 cases, Rowan County has 122 deaths and 4,746 cases, Cabarrus County has 99 deaths and 5,693 cases, and Union County has 67 deaths and 6,671 cases — a total of 857 deaths and 63,387 cases.

In and near the Triangle area, Wake County has 279 deaths and 24,076 cases, Durham County has 103 deaths and 10,053 cases, Johnston County has 69 deaths and 6,447 cases, and Orange County has 60 deaths and 3,425 cases — a total of 511 deaths and 44,001 cases.

In the interior of the 12-county Piedmont Triad, Guilford County has 216 deaths and 13,640 cases, Forsyth County has 137 deaths and 10,562 cases, Randolph County has 72 deaths and 4,491 cases, and Davidson County has 48 deaths and 4,325 cases — a total of 473 deaths and 33,018 cases.

According to the coronavirus tracker of Johns Hopkins University, available on BladenJournal.com, more than 10.7 million confirmed cases and 242,000 deaths are counted in the U.S.