SC adds more than 1,000 coronavirus cases, surpasses 25,000 total
South Carolina officials said Monday the state has confirmed 1,002 additional coronavirus cases, making the fifth straight day that daily case counts have exceeded 900.
The Palmetto State also reached two new milestones, surpassing 25,000 total cases of COVID-19 and seeing more than 700 people hospitalized because of the virus.
In all, 25,666 people have been diagnosed with the virus since March.
Department of Health and Environmental Control officials also identified six more people who died after contracting COVID-19, bringing the statewide death toll up to 659.
Which counties were affected?
Charleston County saw the largest increase in coronavirus patients, reporting 209 new cases. Locally, Richland County officials saw 41 new cases, and Lexington County saw 22.
Of the patients who died, four were elderly, and came from Clarendon, Greenville, Marion and Richland counties. Two were middle aged, coming from Darlington and Lancaster counties.
What’s new?
DHEC officials have increased their testing goals. Previously, state health officials aimed to test about 2%, of the state’s population, or about 110,000, each month.
On Monday, DHEC announced they were increasing their testing goal to about 165,000 per month, a milestone they hoped to reach by the end of the year, according to the DHEC statement.
State health officials will try to meet that goal incrementally, starting by testing about 140,000 people in June, July and August.
“Expansive testing is critical in quickly identifying hot spots, catching outbreaks before they spread, and indicating where resources are most needed in the state,” the statement read. “Increased testing also helps provide a better understanding of the overall prevalence of the virus within South Carolina.”
How are hospitals being impacted?
With more people contracting COVID-19, more of South Carolina’s about 10,500 are being filled.
For the first time since DHEC began reporting data on hospitalizations in April, more than 700 beds across the state are occupied by coronavirus patients.
As of Friday, 731 of the 7,119 — or just over 10% — of occupied hospital beds across the state were being used by COVID-19 patients or those who are thought to have it. That’s a 70% increase from May 22.
Across the state, hospitals were at 67.9% capacity.
Locally, hospitals are seeing even more of a burden. In Richland County, 71.2% of beds are in use, and in Lexington County, 75.9%. DHEC has not provided the number of hospital beds occupied by COVID patients by county.
Over the last five days, DHEC officials have recorded more than 600 hospital beds being used by coronavirus patients, a record the state had not reached before. In April and May, the daily number of hospitalized patients averaged at about 411, and did not surpass 500.
DHEC officials have warned that an uptick in coronavirus cases may lead to an increase in hospitalizations weeks later.
Are all cases accounted for?
State health officials estimate that as much as 86% of COVID-19 infections go undiagnosed or untested. As of Monday, that meant that about 183,300 people had the virus in South Carolina since March.
DHEC has also started to track what they consider to be probable cases or probable deaths. A probable case is someone who has not received lab test results, but has coronavirus symptoms or a positive antibody test, according to DHEC’s definition. A probable death would be someone whose death certificate lists COVID-19 as a cause of death or a contributing factor, but has not received a lab test.
On Monday, they reported two probable cases and no probable deaths.
How is COVID-19 trending in SC?
South Carolina has seen record high daily coronavirus case counts over the past two weeks, showing that the virus’ activity in the state is increasing dramatically. Last week, DHEC officials recorded case counts ranging from 577 to 1,157, and the week before, cases fell between 434 and 802.
Each day over the last two weeks, the state has announced total COVID-19 case numbers that have exceeded by hundreds of cases the daily counts announced in March, April and early May. From mid-April to mid-May, health officials saw an average of about 166 cases per day.
DHEC officials use the percentage of positive tests to gauge the virus’ progression in the state. Over the last 28 days, that number has gone up.
On Monday, DHEC officials calculated that 12.6% of tests were positive, a number that is similar to what health officials saw on days in March and early April. At its lowest point, the percent of positive tests fell between 2-4% on average.
Why are case numbers up?
DHEC officials say the increase could be due to more people leaving their homes and fewer wearing masks and practicing social distancing.
Starting April 20, S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster has gradually reopened businesses, including restaurants, retailers, beaches and close contact businesses such as gyms and salons. The Columbia Republican pushed to open some attractions as well by Memorial Day.
The governor has also said that he does not plan to reimpose or add new restrictions on businesses or require residents to wear masks, adding that it’s South Carolinians’ individual responsibility to practice social distancing.
HOW DHEC’S TESTING PLAN IMPACTS CASE NUMBERS
DHEC officials have said their increased testing strategy could also be driving up the number of cases identified each day.
Since March, labs have completed 347,193 tests.
But while cases have increased dramatically, the number of daily tests has stayed relatively steady since the week of May 10, completing about 35,000 tests a week.
This story was originally published June 22, 2020 at 2:35 PM.
