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Coronavirus cases in Florida top 49,000 in Friday update; 2,190 deaths

Published  May 22, 2020 11:18am EDT
Coronavirus in Florida
FOX 13 News

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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 776 since yesterday morning as the virus spreads and as more people are tested across the state. The total number of cases in Florida is now 49,451.

The number of deaths has reached 2,190, an increase of 46 since Wednesday's update. Locally, Hillsborough reported six new deaths, Polk and Sarasota each noted three, Manatee reported two more, and DeSoto reported one.

Of the 49,451 cases, 48,150 are Florida residents while 1,301 are non-Florida residents currently in the state. 

Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:

Hillsborough: 1,790

Pinellas: 1,116

Sarasota: 565

Manatee: 946

Sumter: 252 (decrease of 2)

Polk: 840

Citrus: 118

Hernando: 110

Pasco: 338

Highlands: 111

DeSoto: 97

Hardee: 60

The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients or those currently hospitalized. As of Friday, 9,117 people had been hospitalized for treatment at some point.

A total of 837,172 people have been tested in the state as of Friday -- about 3.9% of the state's population -- according to the Florida Department of Health.

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

After two peaks in early and mid-April, the state’s curve has generally flattened over the last few weeks. In the last 30 days, the state has averaged just under 700 new cases per day. That’s down to a level that the health care system can handle, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis.

New Florida resident cases are in orange; new deaths are in gray. Source: Fla. DOH

As Florida continues taking steps to ease restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, health experts say new cases and more deaths are expected.

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. The number of non-Florida residents who have died from the coronavirus while in the state is not reported.

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

CORONAVIRUS IN FLORIDA: What you need to know

AROUND THE WORLD: CoronavirusNOW.com

Map of known COVID-19 cases: