PA COVID Cases Down 33 Percent: See Latest Data

PENNSYLVANIA — New coronavirus cases continued to plummet in Pennsylvania over the past week, as the state saw a 33 percent decrease over last week's already reduced numbers. The improvements come in the midst of the third consecutive week of a falling curve, as the fourth wave of the virus appears to abate.

A total of 9,522 cases were found in the seven-day period ending May 13, according to the Department of Health's Early Warning Monitoring Dashboard system. That's a significant reduction from the previous week's 14,400 cases.

Gov. Tom Wolf pointed to the increasing vaccination rate as a key driver of the improvements.

"Pennsylvanians continue to seek out the vaccine – vaccinating more than 79,000 residents a day," he said in a statement. "These residents are adding the best layer of defense against this virus. We appreciate the commitment of our fellow Pennsylvanians in continuing this fight as COVID-19 remains a threat in our community."

The positivity rate has also continued its precipitous decline, dropping 1.3 points from 6.6 to 5.3 percent in the last seven days.

There are now no counties in Pennsylvania with a 20 percent positivity rate or higher, an important benchmark. Meanwhile, dozens have fallen below the 5 percent "suppression" threshold.

Healthcare metrics show a similar downward trajectory. The average daily number of hospitalizations over the past week due to coronavirus was 1,758, down from 2,131 last week. The percentage of emergency room visits due to COVID symptoms fell from 0.8 to 0.7, while the average daily number of patients on ventilators fell from 253 to 239.

State officials are also continuing to monitor how each county is performing in community transmission. The latest figures place two counties in the "low" category, 25 in the "moderate" category," and 40 in the "substantial" group. Here's the breakdown:

Low

Cameron, Forest

Moderate

Adams, Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Centre, Chester, Clinton, Crawford, Cumberland, Delaware, Elk, Fayette, Fulton, Greene, Jefferson, Juniata, Lawrence, Mercer, Montgomery, Montour, Snyder, Tioga, Warren, Washington, and Westmoreland

Substantial

Armstrong, Bedford, Berks, Blair, Bradford, Bucks, Cambria, Carbon, Clarion, Clearfield, Columbia, Dauphin, Erie, Franklin, Huntingdon, Indiana, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Lycoming, McKean, Mifflin, Monroe, Northampton, Northumberland, Perry, Philadelphia, Pike, Potter, Schuylkill, Somerset, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Union, Venango, Wayne, Wyoming, and York