Anne Arundel Passes 300 Coronavirus-Related Deaths, 20K Cases

ANNE ARUNDEL, COUNTY, MD — Last week challenged Anne Arundel County residents. The County reached 300 coronavirus-related deaths and passed 20,000 total cases.

Additionally, County Executive Steuart Pittman announced new regulations that will pause indoor and outdoor dining for four weeks, effective Wednesday. Marylanders got one piece of good news, however, as the first coronavirus vaccines reached the state.

Anne Arundel County tallied more than 1,000 coronavirus infections for the fifth straight week. The county is reporting more than three times as many cases-per-day as its summertime high.

Last week's 1,960 infections are up 273 from the week prior, setting a new record for the most cases in a seven-day span. The virus also killed eight county residents last week, the Maryland Department of Health said.

Hospitalizations are swelling, and the positivity rate has tripled since its August low. Here is a look at how Anne Arundel County's coronavirus metrics are trending as the fall surge takes hold in Maryland.

Coronavirus Case Rate

Health officials focus on several metrics to evaluate the coronavirus pandemic. The most frequently-used are the case rate, hospitalizations and percent positivity.

The case rate is a per-capita measure that makes it easy to compare places with different populations. A jurisdiction's case rate is the average number of new coronavirus infections-per-day that it registers over a rolling week per 100,000 people.

As a barometer, Maryland health officials say expanded in-person classes are probably safe when the local case rate dips below 5. Anne Arundel County's case rate has spiked to 48.78. That's up by 9.12 from last week, and it's the jurisdiction’s highest clip ever.

Anne Arundel's case rate hit previous highs of 13.4 on June 3 and 14.26 on Aug. 2. It reached a low of 3.53 on June 26, but it's been an upward climb since then.

Hospitalizations

Coronavirus-related hospitalizations are soaring. Hospitalizations are down from their April 21 high of 172, but they are still above their summertime lows.

The disease left 130 Anne Arundel County residents hospitalized on Sunday. That's up 21 from the week prior. Wednesday's 132 hospitalizations were the most since May 13.

The county had fewer than 50 hospitalizations between June 14 and Oct. 18. They hit an overall low of 21 on Sept. 21.

Covid ActNow, a coronavirus statistics website, estimates that Anne Arundel County has 50 beds in the intensive care unit. Hospitals need to save some of these beds for emergencies that aren't related to coronavirus.

On Sunday, Anne Arundel had 36 patients in the ICU with the virus. That's up 10 from this time last week, and it's the most since May 28.

ICU usage maxed out at 49 on May 13. It receded to 4 by Aug. 24. ICU beds then hit a recent high of 30 on Nov. 27.

Positivity Rate

The county's positivity rate is back on the rise. This is the percentage of coronavirus tests that come back positive over a moving seven days. The statistic also measures whether an area has enough tests to identify most of its infections.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says a positivity rate of less than 5 percent demonstrates that a region has enough testing to control its outbreak. The Maryland Department of Health says hybrid learning should be safe when jurisdictions fall beneath this benchmark.

Anne Arundel County's positivity rate reached 8.02 percent on Saturday, which is up by 0.99 percentage points from this time last week. The county's percent positivity is the highest it's been since June 15.

The positivity rate is down from its April 16 high of 28.16 percent, but it's up from its Aug. 16 low of 2.29 percent.

The county stayed beneath the 5 percent positivity threshold for 137 days. That streak, which started on June 22, came to an end on Nov. 7. The local positivity rate dipped below 5 percent for three days last week, but it has since increased.

Total Cases And Deaths

Anne Arundel County's 20,389 coronavirus infections are the fifth most in the state. The virus is blamed for the death of 300 county residents.

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RELATED:

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• Restaurants, Bars Shut Down For 4 Weeks In Anne Arundel County
• More Coronavirus Regulations Hit Anne Arundel As Cases Soar
• Coronavirus Holiday Season May Be 'A Little Depressing': Pittman
• AACPS Delays Hybrid Classes; Anne Arundel Coronavirus Cases Surge

Have a story idea? Please contact me at jacob.baumgart@patch.com with any pitches, tips or questions. Follow me on Twitter @JacobBaumgart and on Facebook @JacobBaumgartJournalist to stay up-to-date with the latest Anne Arundel County and Prince George's County news.