DHEC reports 601 new coronavirus cases with nearly 20% of tests positive
South Carolina has added another 601 confirmed cases of COVID-19 to its total, health officials announced Wednesday, bringing the state’s total to 118,699.
But while this marks the third day in a row that South Carolina has recorded fewer than 1,000 new cases of the novel coronavirus, the state’s testing numbers also continue to decline — the Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 3,063 test results, the second-lowest figure the state has had since in three months.
DHEC also reported 26 new deaths Wednesday, putting the state’s death toll at 2,652 since the pandemic began in March.
Wednesday’s testing totals put the percentage of tests returning positive across S.C. at 19.6%, a figure that indicates the coronavirus is still spreading throughout the state.
Thus far this week, South Carolina’s percentage positive is above 19% for the first time in six weeks. Those numbers are similar to what health officials reported in June and July, when the state saw its largest spike in COVID-19 cases but also regularly reported more than 10,000 tests per day.
The World Health Organization suggests 5% should be the standard before countries consider reopening, and DHEC state epidemiologist Linda Bell has cited the same percentage as a goal.
Which counties were affected?
Spartanburg County led the state Wednesday with 74 new cases.
In the Midlands, Richland County has seen an increase in cases recently, coinciding with the return of thousands of college students to the University of South Carolina and other campuses. It added 68 new cases Wednesday, second most in the state.
Neighboring Lexington County saw 34 new confirmed cases.
Residents from the following counties died after contracting the virus: Aiken (1), Anderson (3), Beaufort (1), Berkeley (1), Charleston (2), Dorchester (2), Florence (4), Greenville (4), Greenwood (3), Orangeburg (1), Spartanburg (2), Sumter (1) and York (1).
How is COVID-19 trending in SC?
The number of daily new cases reported in South Carolina hit a high of 2,343 on July 18. In the month since, totals have slowly dropped. Daily case counts dropped to under 1,000 for 13 consecutive days, before a spike again this past weekend.
State health officials have said that the virus’ progression has been slowing significantly in areas with face mask requirements and where residents are practicing social distancing.
However, the drop in case numbers can also be attributed in part to labs performing fewer tests, DHEC officials have said. In order to account for that possibility, officials have highlighted the importance of percentage of tests run that come back positive.
In May, at its lowest point, the percentage of positive tests fell between 2% and 4% on average, while it peaked in July at consistently upwards of 20%.
The percentage of COVID-19 tests with positive results has declined from its high in mid-July, but the weekly average is still well above the 5% standard DHEC has said it would like to see.
Nationally, about 9.1% of tests turn up positive, according to the CDC.
In all, 1,023,083 tests have been completed in South Carolina since March, including 957,228 viral tests and 63,448 antibody tests, which can tell if an individual has been exposed to the virus but cannot confirm an active infection.
Are all cases accounted for?
State health officials estimate that around 86% of South Carolinians who contract the virus don’t get tested.
DHEC has also been recording probable cases and probable deaths. A probable case is someone who has not received a lab test results but has virus symptoms or a positive antibody test. A probable death is someone who has not gotten a lab test but whose death certificate lists COVID-19 as a cause of death or a contributing factor.
On Tuesday, state health officials reported 45 new probable cases and 11 new probable deaths. That brings the total number of probable cases up to 1,804 and total probable deaths to 142.
DHEC officials have said the slow down in testing over the past several weeks could mean that more people with the coronavirus have gone untested and undiagnosed.
How are hospitals being impacted?
As of Tuesday, the state reported 892 patients in South Carolina hospitals have coronavirus, including 228 patients in intensive care and 145 patients on ventilators.
In all, 80.73% of in-patient beds are occupied in S.C. hospitals, including 75.19% of beds in intensive care units.
The number of coronavirus patients hospitalized at one time peaked at more than 1,700 on July 23, and the daily numbers have declined since, dipping under 1,000 recently.
This story was originally published September 2, 2020 at 2:22 PM.
