10,603 new Florida coronavirus cases reported Sunday; 97 new deaths

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Jordan Bowen reports.

TAMPA, Fla. - The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 10,603 Sunday. According to the state's daily update, the total number of cases in Florida is now 1,365,436

The number of Florida resident deaths has reached 21,987, an increase of 97 since Saturday's update. In addition, a total of 323 non-Floridians have died in the state.

Locally, Pinellas County is reporting 14 new deaths, Citrus County is reporting nine, Pasco and Hillsborough Counties are each reporting six, Hernando County is reporting two, while Manatee and Sumter Counties are each reporting one new death.

Of the 1,365,436 cases, 1,341,287 are Florida residents while 24,149 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.

Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:

Hillsborough: 80,035
Pinellas: 46,860
Sarasota: 19,271
Manatee: 22,920
Sumter: 5,350
Polk: 38,843
Citrus: 6,903
Hernando: 7,677
Pasco: 22,879
Highlands: 5,135
DeSoto: 2,946
Hardee: 2,156

Source: Florida Department of Health

The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients. As of Sunday, 6,966 Floridians were currently hospitalized for a primary diagnosis of COVID-19, an increase of 265 since Sunday, with a state total of 63,332 having been hospitalized for treatment at some point.

Vaccination efforts are ramping up across the state. So far, a total of 255,808 have received their first vaccine dose in Florida. No one has yet received their second and final dose.

Source: Florida Department of Health

The number of new cases had generally been trending down in the fall, mirroring the number of tests being given. But it has begun to increase again. The 17,192 new cases reported Thursday was the highest single-day increase since July.

The rate of positive new tests has declined from its summertime peak, remaining below 10% for several months, but it has also begun to increase again. It was at 12.43% on Saturday, the most recent date available.

After peaking in July, the number of deaths also began a downward trend in August that continued until November -- though "significant delays" in data reporting, as the state says, make interpreting short-term trends from that statistic less reliable.

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Source: Florida Department of Health

PDF: DOH's full county-by-county COVID-19 case report

Editor's note: The number of new cases and deaths reported each day does not necessarily reflect the day that the case was confirmed. The state says some private testing labs dump large batches of test results which include cases from previous days, and data can take days or weeks to validate. Stats for today and previous days will likely change in the future as the state reviews more cases and updates retroactive data.

The state's number of deaths represents permanent Florida residents who have died from COVID-19.

MAP: Florida coronavirus cases by county

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If you feel sick:

The Florida Department of Health has opened a COVID-19 Call Center at 1-866-779-6121. Agents will answer questions around the clock. Questions may also be emailed to covid-19@flhealth.gov. Email responses will be sent during call center hours.

LINK: Florida's COVID-19 website

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