PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia reported 640 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday morning, bringing its cumulative total to 9,630 overall, as health officials are now adding probable cases to the overall daily total.
Probable cases mean doctors have made a diagnosis of COVID-19, but there isn’t enough testing available to confirm the case, the Virginia Department of Health says. Tuesday’s new total also came with only 1,619 new completed tests, less than the average number of new tests (between 2,000 and 3,000) that Virginia has been reporting daily. Governor Ralph Northam said Monday that testing is being increased via a new taskforce, but still needs to be improved.
Of those 640 new cases, 179 were probable, VDH data shows. Taking away those probable cases and only looking at cases confirmed by positive tests, Virginia still saw 461 positive results, higher than Monday’s tally of 453.
Before Tuesday, numbers had trended downward for the past three days. Northam said Monday during his press conference that one model his staff is monitoring shows Virginia’s peak in daily COVID-19 cases is projected to happen at the end of this week, though the graph will likely plateau over a period of time rather than rise and fall sharply.
Per White House guidelines for states/regions to phase in the reopening of certain businesses, daily COVID-19 case numbers must trend down 14 days before any reopening can take place.
Another big development in the Virginia Department of Health’s COVID-19 dashboard: Cases, hospitalizations and deaths are being broken down by locality instead of broader health districts.
Here’s the latest breakdown in cases in the Tidewater area:
Accomack: 52 cases, 15 hospitalized, 1 death
Chesapeake: 176 cases, 39 hospitalized, 5 deaths
Franklin: 12 cases, 0 hospitalized, 0 deaths
Gloucester: 21 cases, 4 hospitalized, 1 death
Hampton: 92 cases, 26 hospitalized, 1 death
Isle of Wight: 88 cases, 8 hospitalized, 1 deaths
James City County: 146 cases, 51 hospitalized, 12 deaths
Mathews: 3 cases, 1 hospitalized, 0 deaths,
Newport News: 101 cases, 32 hospitalized, 6 deaths
Norfolk: 118 cases, 28 hospitalized, 3 deaths
Northampton: 7 cases 1 hospitalized, 0 deaths
Poquoson: 6 cases, 2 hospitalized, 0 death
Portsmouth: 82 cases, 28 hospitalized, 4 deaths
Southampton: 18 cases, 3 hospitalized, 1 death
Suffolk: 111 cases, 24 hospitalized, 2 deaths
Virginia Beach: 288 cases, 60 hospitalized, 8 deaths
Williamsburg: 15 cases, 5 hospitalized, 1 death
York: 44 cases, 6 hospitalized, 1 death
24 new deaths were also reported statewide on Tuesday, the highest figure in three days.
Hospitalizations statewide rose slightly from 1,296 on Monday to 1,331 on Tuesday, per Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association data, but overall hospitalizations have remained steady. 403 are in the ICU and 251 are on ventilators.
1,418 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from Virginia hospitals so far.