5,831 new Florida coronavirus cases Tuesday; 276 new deaths in largest daily increase

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TAMPA, Fla. - The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 5,831 Tuesday as the virus spreads and as more people are tested across the state. The total number of cases in Florida is now 542,792.

The number of Florida resident deaths has reached 8,553, an increase of 276 since Monday's update. In addition, a total of 132 non-Floridians have died in the state. Locally, Sarasota County reported 15 new deaths, Pinellas reported 13, Polk reported 12, Manatee reported eight, Hillsborough reported seven, Pasco, Hernando, and Desoto each reported two, while Citrus and Sumter each reported one.

Of the 542,792 cases, 536,981 are Florida residents while 5,811 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.

Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:

Hillsborough: 32,996
Pinellas: 18,103
Sarasota: 6,314
Manatee: 9,395
Sumter: 1,344
Polk: 14,645
Citrus: 1,594
Hernando: 2,069
Pasco: 7,172
Highlands: 1,474
DeSoto: 1,377
Hardee: 986

Florida new resident cases in orange; new resident deaths in gray. Note: Deaths usually appear to be trending down because of the delay in confirming the last few days of data. Source: Fla. Dept. of Health.

The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients. As of Tuesday, 6,768 Floridians were currently hospitalized for a primary diagnosis of COVID-19; in total, 31,354 have been hospitalized for treatment at some point.

A total of 4,055,587 people have been tested in the state as of Tuesday -- about 18.9% of the state's population -- according to the Florida Department of Health.

LINK: County-by-county Florida coronavirus cases and ZIP code map

Source: Fla. Dept. of Health.

Today's new case number represents the 70th straight day with new cases near or over 1,000 per day. The rate of positive new tests has increased during that time period, but has begun to trend down slightly. It was at 10.3% on Monday, the most recent date available.

As the number of new cases has trended up over the last few weeks, the number of deaths has also reflected the same upward trend -- though "significant delays" in data reporting, as the state says, make interpreting short-term trends from that statistic less reliable.

The 276 new deaths reported today is the largest single daily increase so far during the pandemic.

Source: Fla. Dept. of Health.

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

Experts explain how Florida counts COVID-19 deaths

Health experts say the daily number of deaths reported by the state does not reflect the actual amount of deaths on Thursday. Instead, it's a representation of the number of deaths over about a one-week time span.

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. 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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