Record number of COVID-19 deaths reported in Mississippi Tuesday including two in Warren County

Last updated: August 25, 2020

COVID-19 statistics held a mixture of good and bad news Tuesday. On the good news side, the state’s number of hospitalizations is on a clear downward trend from the end of July. On the other hand, Mississippi reported a record number of deaths including two in Warren County.

In Warren County, the Mississippi State Department of Health reported 12 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday and two new deaths, one on a death certificate report. With 18 deaths reported in the county this month, August has been the deadliest month since the crisis began in March. The cumulative number of cases in the county to date is 1,260, and the county’s death toll is 43.

Statewide, MSDH reported 801 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, bringing the total cumulative confirmed cases in Mississippi to 79.206. With six of the last seven days reporting fewer than 1,000 cases, the seven-day average of new cases is 857, up more than 110 cases from the beginning of the seven-day period.

MSDH reported Tuesday that 67 Mississippians died of COVID-19 statewide, a new one-day record, bringing the total number of deaths in the state to 2,315. The previous record for deaths in one day was set Aug. 5 with 51 deaths. The state’s rate of deaths to confirmed cases is about 2.9%. The rate had been holding steady for at least two weeks at 2.8% but has risen slightly in the past week.

The numbers of deaths can lag new cases by two weeks or more, which may be one reason deaths in the state had not risen dramatically until July 7 when 44 deaths were reported. In addition, most new cases are seen in younger people recently, and they are more likely to survive the virus than those 65 and older. By far, the age group reporting the most cases in Mississippi are young people from 18 to 29 years old.

MSDH reported deaths in the following counties Tuesday:

Twenty-three confirmed COVID-19 related deaths between July 1 and Aug. 17 were identified from death certificate reports.

Deaths and new cases were reported as of 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 24. MSDH usually reports new statistics on the COVID-19 coronavirus each day based on the previous day’s testing and death reports.

The primary metric concerning state health officials are the numbers of people hospitalized, and that number rose steadily with the rise of new cases. On June 6, the number of Mississippians hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19 was at 358. Since then, hospitalizations have nearly tripled. They have leveled off in the past couple of weeks and are now seeing a drop. A month ago, health officials began warning repeatedly that some hospitals were running out of ICU beds. That warning became more urgent as the number of critical cases continued to rise. With the number of cases falling in the past couple of weeks, critical cases are now also seeing a drop.

The number of Mississippians hospitalized for the virus as of 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 23, is 903, showing a clear downward trend after peaking in late July. The number includes 758 with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 145 people with suspected but unconfirmed cases. Of those with confirmed infections, 237 were critically ill and in intensive care units and 127 were on ventilators.

MSDH has estimated the number of people who can be presumed recovered from COVID-19 in Mississippi. That number is 62,707 through Sunday, Aug. 23. This figure is updated weekly. It represents about 79.2% of the cumulative 79,206 cases reported as of Tuesday, Aug. 25.

The number of cases in Warren County three weeks ago, Tuesday, Aug. 4, was 976, therefore the estimated number of people presumed recovered in the county is 933, or about 74% of the 1,260 cumulative cases reported Tuesday, Aug. 25. The county has an estimated 284 active cases.

These estimates are based on MSDH’s guidelines for calculating estimated recoveries when hospitalizations are not known, using the number of cases 21 days ago, less known outcomes (deaths).

The total number of Mississippians tested for COVID-19 (PCR tests) as of Sunday, Aug. 23, is 539,828 or about 18.1% of the state’s 2.976 million residents. The positivity rate (positive results to tests, seven-day average) was 33.2% Monday, down from 40.8% Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University, indicating Mississippi is not testing nearly enough, and results are probably an undercount of actual infections. The national rate is currently 6.1%, and a rate of 5% or less indicates adequate testing. Mississippi’s positivity rate has been the highest or among the highest in the nation for weeks.

The total number of outbreaks in long-term care facilities is 176 Tuesday. About 41.6%, or 963, of the state’s total deaths were people in long-term care facilities. Twelve of the 67 deaths reported Tuesday were in long-term care facilities.

In Warren County as of 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 20, MSDH reported that three long-term facilities were under investigation for active COVID-19 outbreaks:

• Shady Lawn had seven cases among staff, 32 cases among residents and nine resident deaths.
• The Bluffs had 15 cases among staff, 44 cases among residents and three resident deaths.
• Vicksburg Convalescent had 11 cases among staff, four cases among residents and no resident deaths.

A total of 20 deaths in the county were residents of LTC facilities.

For additional information, visit the MSDH website.