Nevada adds more than 3K new COVID-19 cases and 25 deaths

Nevada on Wednesday reported 3,053 new coronavirus cases, the third time the state has logged more than 3,000 cases in a day since late November, according to state data.

New figures posted by the Department of Health and Human Services on its coronavirus website also showed 25 additional deaths, slightly below the moving seven-day average of daily reported deaths of 26. The updated data brought totals in the state to 176,334 cases and 2,384 deaths.

The state has eclipsed 3,000 new cases in a single day only twice before: on Nov. 25, when 3,159 cases were reported and on Saturday, when a record 3,194 cases were logged. The new cases reported on Wednesday were well above the moving seven-day average of daily reported cases of 2,763.

The state’s two-week positivity rate, which essentially tracks the percentage of people tested who are determined to be positive, increased by 0.5 percentage points on Wednesday, reaching 22.3 percent. It’s the highest the rate has been since the state revised its reporting of the statistic in mid-October.

The surge in coronavirus cases is putting additional strain on the state’s health care system, especially hospitals, where a record 1,811 suspected or confirmed COVID-19 case were occupying beds on Wednesday.

According to the Nevada Hospital Association’s daily report, hospitalizations numbers are continuing to experience a “modest climb driven by cases in the south.”

“Northern Nevada has seen the COVID hospitalization curve stall the past few days,” the statement said. “This is encouraging but, it remains too early to determine if this is a trend change or if the decline will continue.”

As of Wednesday, 81 percent of licensed hospital beds in the state are occupied, along with 73 percent of adult intensive care beds. Southern Nevada facilities are fuller than the state as a whole, with 88 percent of licensed beds occupied and 77 percent of adult intensive care beds, according to data from the hospital association.

Nevada is on day 16 of Gov. Steve Sisolak’s 21-day “pause” — tighter COVID restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the virus — but none of the key metrics the state monitors has decreased in the past two weeks. Although Sisolak has hinted that he may impose more restrictions if disease indicators don’t improve, it remains unclear what that could entail.

In Clark County, meanwhile, health officials reported 2,132 additional COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, along with 17 additional deaths.

Updated figures posted to the Southern Nevada Health District’s coronavirus website brought totals in the county to 133,642 cases and 1,900 deaths. Both numbers are included in the state data.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.