Pennsylvania reports highest COVID-19 death increase since April, thousands hospitalized

PITTSBURGH — There were 8,703 new positive cases of coronavirus across Pennsylvania, bringing the state’s total to 445,317 since the pandemic began.

According to the Pa. Department of Health, there are currently 5,561 people hospitalized from COVID-19 -- 1,160 of those are in the ICU with severe cases.

Statewide, an increase of 220 coronavirus-related deaths is the highest total in Pa. since April. As of Dec. 9, there have been 11,762 COVID-19 deaths in Pa. since the pandemic began.

You can view a county-by-county breakdown of COVID-19 numbers at the state health department’s dashboard HERE.

The Allegheny County Health Department reported Wednesday that 34 new deaths related to COVID-19 were reported to the state’s Electronic Death Reporting System.

The dates of the deaths ranged from Nov. 20 to Dec. 8. One person was in their 40s, one in their 50s, four people in their 70s, 16 in their 80s and 12 people in their 90s. Nineteen deaths were associated with long-term care facilities, the county reported.

In the last 24 hours, 727 new cases were reported to the county Health Department. Of these, 645 are confirmed cases from 2,099 new PCR tests. There are 82 probable cases. New cases range in age from 4 months to 100 years, with a median age of 43 years. The dates of positive tests ranged from Nov. 28 to Dec. 8. Twenty-four positive tests are more than a week old.

Since March 14, there have been 35,541 cases of COVID-19 in Allegheny County residents, 2,361 hospitalizations and 619 deaths.

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Cox Media Group