New coronavirus cases increased 3.5% in North Carolina in the week ending Sunday as the state added 21,189 cases. The previous week had 20,480 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.
North Carolina ranked third among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States decreased 7.7% from the week before, with 436,694 cases reported. With 3.15% of the country’s population, North Carolina had 4.85% of the country’s cases in the last week. Across the country, 24 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.
Cleveland County reported 216 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 306 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 34,120 cases and 423 deaths.
Within North Carolina, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Yadkin County with 552 cases per 100,000 per week; Graham County with 486; and Caldwell County with 367. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.
Adding the most new cases overall were Wake County, with 2,150 cases; Mecklenburg County, with 1,974 cases; and Guilford County, with 1,022. Weekly case counts rose in 60 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week’s pace were in Wake, Johnston and Randolph counties.
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Across North Carolina, cases fell in 39 counties, with the best declines in Gaston County, with 385 cases from 516 a week earlier; in Cleveland County, with 216 cases from 306; and in Orange County, with 223 cases from 302.
In North Carolina, 49 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 30 people were reported dead.
A total of 3,162,491 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 26,414 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 95,658,236 people have tested positive and 1,053,419 people have died.
>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States
North Carolina’s COVID-19 hospital admissions staying flat
USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Sept. 18. Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:
- Last week: 2,698
- The week before that: 2,747
- Four weeks ago: 2,591
Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:
- Last week: 57,618
- The week before that: 58,248
- Four weeks ago: 66,210
Hospitals in 15 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 14 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 22 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.
The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.
