MSDH reports 824 new COVID-19 cases; 95 new cases and one death in South Mississippi
Mississippi reported 894 new coronavirus cases and six additional deaths Saturday.
The deaths included one in Jackson County, but none in the five other counties in South Mississippi.
Ninety-five of the state’s new cases were reported in the six counties of South Mississippi. Harrison County had the most new cases with 49, followed by 23 new cases in Jackson County and 11 in George County.
Harrison and Jackson counties remain under a mask mandate at the direction of Gov. Tate Reeves after meeting the criteria for the requirement — 500 cases per 100,000 residents over a two-week period.
The mask mandate will remain in place through at least Nov. 11, and voters in Harrison and Jackson counties will be required to wear masks to the polls Tuesday. But those who don’t wear masks to vote will not be turned away, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Here are the case totals for each county Saturday:
George — 1,035 (2 new)
Hancock — 892 (9 new)
Harrison — 5,615 (49 new)
Jackson — 4,940 (23 new)
Pearl River — 1,199 (11 new)
Stone — 507 (1 new)
Friday, Oct. 30
Mississippi reported 749 new coronavirus cases and 18 new deaths on Friday.
The deaths included one each in Harrison and Jackson County. Additionally, three deaths total in Hancock, Harrison and Jackson Counties were identified from death certificate reports between July 31 and Oct. 25, the state health department said.
Eighty-four of the state’s new cases were reported in the six counties of South Mississippi. Jackson County reported the most with 33.
Harrison and Jackson counties are now both under a mask mandate ordered by Gov. Tate Reeves, after meeting the benchmarks of more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents over a designated two-week period, and more than 200 cases total over the designated two-week period (with more than 200 cases per 100,000 residents).
The mandate will be in place at least through Nov. 11, meaning voters in Harrison and Jackson Counties will be required to wear masks at polling places on Election Day. However, voters without masks will not be turned away from the polls.
Here are the case totals for each county:
George — 1,033 (3 new)
Hancock — 883 (2 new)
Harrison — 5,566 (29 new)
Jackson — 4,917 (33 new)
Pearl River — 1,188 (9 new)
Stone — 506 (8 new)
Thursday, Oct. 29
Mississippi State Department of Health reported Thursday 970 new cases of the coronavirus and 8 deaths, 1 of them in George County.
The number of people hospitalized with the coronavirus in Mississippi stayed level even as new cases rose, but that is starting to change.
The report shows 600 people were hospitalized with confirmed cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday, up from 577 on Tuesday and the second highest number this month. COVID-19 patients in ICU also increased to 176, which is the highest in October. Those on ventilators increased by to 68, but remains below the high of 73 on Oct. 20.
The seven-day average for Mississippi increased to 787 cases per day.
Mississippi’s totals are 118,587 cases and 3,310 deaths since the pandemic began March 11.
South Mississippi had 179 new cases reported Thursday with 1 death in George County. The totals for the six Coast counties are 14,009 cases and 295 deaths.
Totals by county are:
George — 1,030 (13 new)
Hancock — 881 (13 new)
Harrison — 5,537 (46 new)
Jackson — 4,884 (84 new)
Pearl River — 1,179 (16 new)
Stone — 498 (7 new)
Wednesday, Oct. 28
Mississippi added another 1,000 new cases of the coronavirus Wednesday, with 19 additional deaths.
Two of those deaths were on the Coast, 1 in Harrison County and 1 in Jackson County from the review of prior death certificates. That brings the total to 294 deaths in the six lower counties.
South Mississippi added 239 new cases, according to the state health department, with Harrison and Jackson county each reporting more than 100 new cases for the day. The seven-day average now stands at 205 per day.
South Mississippi has 13,830 total cases since March 11.
Mississippi’s totals are 117,617 cases, with 3,302 deaths, since the pandemic began.
Despite the increase in cases, the number of people hospitalized with the coronavirus and those in ICU and on ventilators has remained level over the last week.
Total cases in South Mississippi are:
George — 1,017 (3 new)
Hancock — 868 (9 new)
Harrison — 5,491 (102 new)
Jackson — 4,800 (107 new)
Pearl River — 1,163 (13 new)
Stone — 491 (5 new)
Tuesday, Oct. 27
Two Coast counties account for 22% of the new COVID-19 cases reported in Mississippi on Tuesday.
The state health department reported 854 new cases and 20 deaths.
South Mississippi had 226 of those cases, with 2 additional deaths in Jackson County. Harrison County topped the list of new cases on the Coast with 117, followed by Jackson County with 71.
This isn’t the biggest one-day increase of the pandemic — that came on July 29 with 349 new cases in South Mississippi.
It does drive South Mississippi’s seven-day average to the highest level yet at 190 cases on average a day.
The state’s seven-day average is 756 on Tuesday, well down from the high of 1,363 new cases per day on July 30. Presumed recoveries through Oct. 25 stand at 101,385.
Mississippi now has 116,617 total cases since March 11 and 3,283 deaths. Hospitalizations with confirmed cases of the coronavirus and the number of people in ICU and on ventilators has remained fairly level despite the recent increase in cases.
South Mississippi has 13,591 cases and 292 deaths.
Total cases in South Mississippi are:
George — 1,014 (15 new)
Hancock — 859 (9 new)
Harrison — 5,389 (117 new)
Jackson — 4,693 (71 new)
Pearl River — 1,150 (5 new)
Stone — 486 (9 new)
Monday, Oct. 26
Mississippi on Monday reported 675 new cases and 8 deaths after topping 1,200 in Saturday’s report.
For the second weekend, Mississippi Department of Health skipped the Sunday report, but did break down the state numbers over the two days. MSDH reported 228 cases and 2 deaths Sunday, and 447 cases and 6 deaths Monday.
Totals for Mississippi are 115,683 cases and 3,263 deaths since March 11.
Of the more than 115,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the state reports 97,675 recoveries through Oct. 18.
Here is a breakdown of Monday’s report:
South Mississippi numbers:
South Mississippi added 121 new cases over the two days, with 49 in Harrison County and 44 in Jackson County. One death was reported in George County and 1 in Jackson County from the review of a prior death certificate. That brings the total in the six Coast counties to 13,365 cases and 290 deaths.
7-day average:
Mississippi’s seven-day average of new cases is 739. After reaching a high of over 1,300 in late July, the average dropped to 413 new cases a day in mid-September, but has been rising since.
By not releasing the report on Sunday, the seven-day average is skewed at the local level. The average for the lower six counties stands at about 167, up from 122 on Oct. 20. South Mississippi’s trends follow the local numbers, and got to a recent low of 41 in mid-September.
More could get mask mandate:
On Oct. 19, Gov. Tate Reeves ordered a mask mandate for Jackson County and eight other counties that met the threshold of increasing cases. Reeves previously said the benchmark for a mask mandate and more restrictions is either:
- more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents over a designated two-week period
- more than 200 cases total over the designated two-week period (with more than 200 cases per 100,000 residents).
On the report released Monday for Oct. 5-18, Harrison County meets the second standard with 313 cases per 100,000 residents and 652 new total cases. A week ago, Harrison County was at 197.5 per 100,000 people.
Reeves has scheduled a press conference for 2:30 p.m. Monday.
Hospitalizations up and down:
Mississippi started the month with 393 people hospitalized with the coronavirus, and on Oct. 23 the number hit 569, down from the recent high of 605 on Oct. 20. There were 154 patients in ICU on Friday compared to 161 on Oct. 19, and 65 on ventilators, down from 73 on Oct. 20.
Race trends reversed:
Black Mississippians were hardest hit by the coronavirus at the beginning of the pandemic, but State Health officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said Friday there has been a “pretty dramatic shift.”
“... Early on it was like two-thirds African American, and now it’s kind of moved to two-thirds Caucasian,” he said.
“So we’re seeing a lot more transmission within the white community, comparatively. Now granted, there’s a lot more white folks in Mississippi, but even now it’s disproportionate within the white community compared to the population that they represent in the state.”
MSDH reports 48% of deaths in the state are among Black people compared to 47% white people. Black people had 47% of total cases to 45.5% among white people.
Local death toll:
Harrison County, which has the highest population in South Mississippi, had the highest number of deaths, but 1 new death in Jackson County moves the county back to the top with 85 deaths. Harrison has 84, Pearl River 60, Hancock 28, George 19 and Stone 14.
Nursing homes hard-hit:
Residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities in South Mississippi have been hard-hit by the coronavirus — especially in Pearl River County. There 23 of the 94 total deaths in the county are residents of LTC, or 24%. The other counties range from a high of 17% of total deaths in George County in LTC to 8% in Jackson County.
Total cases by county are:
George — 999 (7 new)
Hancock — 850 (10 new)
Harrison — 5,272 (49 new)
Jackson — 4,622 (44 new)
Pearl River — 1,145 (9 new)
Stone — 477 (2 new)
Flu shots are now available by appointment for children and qualifying adults at all Mississippi State Department of Health county health departments.
Flu vaccination is recommended for everyone 6 months and older. Adults who are underinsured or uninsured and who meet certain high-risk criteria qualify for the shots.
Flu shots for insured adults are widely available through private physicians, pharmacies and retail centers.
This story was originally published October 26, 2020 at 1:25 PM.