Latest Bucks Co. Coronavirus Data: Cases Up, But Trail PA Surge

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — The number of new cases of the coronavirus increased in Bucks County last week, but not at the rate of the fall surge that has hit much of Pennsylvania.

In Bucks County, new confirmed cases were up an average of about five per day last week — hitting about 38 per day, compared to just under 33 per day the week before. The county's 265 new cases were up from 229 the previous week.

While that's a move in the wrong direction, Bucks County has not seen the surge in cases that have happened in other parts of Pennsylvania, bringing the state back to numbers not seen since spring.

Bucks County Health Department Director Dr. David Damsker also noted that hospitalizations in Bucks have remained lower than at any time since the onset of the pandemic in March.

"Our hospitalizations remain low, as our local hospitals are doing a fantastic job treating the sicker patients and keeping stays as short as possible," Damsker said. "Because of that, it’s a better situation as compared to March and April, and we need to continue focusing on keeping the virus out of places like long-term care facilities."

Two new deaths from COVID-19 were reported in Bucks County last week. The two women, ages 69 and 92, were the third and fourth Bucks residents to die from the coronavirus in October.

Meanwhile, the county's seven-day test positivity rate ticked up to 3.1 percent, compared to 2.8 percent of people who were tested the previous week. Statewide, that number has risen to 4.3 percent, from 3.9 percent last week.

Statewide, Monday marked the 14th straight day that Pennsylvania reported more than 1,000 new cases of the coronavirus. The state has averaged 1,238 new cases over the past week, a seven-percent increase after a 16-percent jump the week before.

"The fall resurgence is here," Gov. Tom Wolf said at a news conference Monday, where he encouraged residents to renew efforts to wear masks, maintain social distancing and practice sanitation measures that have proven effective in slowing the virus.

“We didn’t exactly stop COVID in its tracks” last spring, “but we did pretty well,” Wolf said. “We can do this again, to stop this fall resurgence.”

In Pennsylvania, college-age students no longer are the main cause of the rising numbers, said Pennsylvania Department of Health Director Dr. Rachel Levine. Now, the spikes also are being seen among people in their 20s, 30s and 40s.

While the number of COVID-19 patients in Pennsylvania has nearly doubled since last month, only five Bucks County residents were hospitalized as of Saturday, with none of them in critical condition or on ventilators.

Nearly half of the new cases reported in Bucks County last week, 128, were attributed to household spread, while another 50 were considered pure community spread. Twenty-seven were from out-of-state travel, 13 were general workplace spread, eight were healthcare workers, three were residents of nursing homes or other care facilities and 24 were delayed reports no longer considered contagious.

Another 36 were not able to immediately complete a full interview with contact tracers.

Through Saturday, 8,995 Bucks County residents had tested positive for COVID-19 since the pandemic began. A total of 534 deaths have been attributed to the virus in Bucks, including 416 residents of long-term care facilities.

Another 7,993 people have been confirmed to have recovered. The median age of those infected in the county has been 49, while the median age of death has been 84.