Virginia COVID-19 Cases Fall As Reported Deaths Hit Daily Record

VIRGINIA — Virginia's COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalization rate are declining. But for the third day in a row, the state on Monday reported a record number of COVID-19-related deaths, according to Virginia Department of Health data.

State health officials recorded 155 new deaths related to COVID-19 on Monday. Of these deaths, 23 were in the northern region.

The VDH said Monday’s record increase in reported deaths and the large reported increases over the weekend are due partly to a lag in inputting death certificate data. The cumulative total of deaths attributed to COVID-19 across Virginia is 7,486.

As of Monday morning, 499,186 Americans have died from COVID-19. President Joe Biden is expected to order all flags flying over federal buildings to fly at half-staff for five days as the nation's nears the “solemn milestone” of 500,000 American deaths from COVID-19, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.

According to VDH data as of Monday, 1,602,502 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in Virginia. There are 1,121,215 people with at least one dose (13.1 percent of the population) and 481,287 with two doses (5.6 percent of the population).

The state is averaging 30,887 doses administered per day. Hospitals lead with 529,260 total doses given, followed by local health departments with 494,184, long-term care facilities with 188,423, medical practices with 167,276, community health providers with 155,122 and pharmacies with 68,237.

An additional 1,155 coronavirus cases were reported on Monday. The seven-day average of daily cases was 1,962, the lowest average since Nov. 19. The cumulative coronavirus case total for Virginia is 565,270.

Northern Virginia had 274 new cases on Monday and a seven-day average of 446.

As of Monday, the number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized stood at 1,537, which includes 318 in the intensive care units and 187 on ventilators. The seven-day moving average for hospitalizations in Virginia now stands at 1,690.7, the lowest since Dec. 2.

As reported by the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, ICU occupancy among all hospital patients is at 76 percent, and ventilator use was at 31 percent.

Virginia's seven-day average of positive tests stood at 8.3 percent as of Feb. 18. The average has been trending down since reaching a winter peak of 17.4 percent on Jan. 3. Northern Virginia's average is 7.6 percent, compared to a winter peak of 16.6 percent on Jan. 2.

The average number of daily PCR testing encounters is trending down since peaking at 35,024 on Jan. 14. The latest average is 21,020.

Below are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area from Sunday to Monday:

• Alexandria: 10,186 cases, 503 hospitalizations, 107 deaths; increase of 15 cases and two deaths
• Arlington County: 12,894 cases, 758 hospitalizations, 214 deaths; increase of 24 cases, five hospitalizations and one death
• Fairfax County: 65,317 cases, 3,466 hospitalizations, 859 deaths; increase of 113 cases, three hospitalizations and eight deaths
• Fairfax City: 479 cases, 36 hospitalizations, 13 deaths; no changes
• Falls Church: 341 cases, 20 hospitalizations, seven deaths; decrease of one case
• Loudoun County: 22,704 cases, 832 hospitalizations, 203 deaths; increase of 50 cases, one hospitalization and three deaths
• Manassas: 3,962 cases, 160 hospitalizations, 35 deaths; increase of seven cases, one hospitalization
• Manassas Park: 1,113 cases, 66 hospitalizations, eight deaths; no changes
• Prince William County: 38,744 cases, 1,367 hospitalizations, 354 deaths; increase of 66 cases, one hospitalization and nine deaths
• Fredericksburg: 1,724 cases, 91 hospitalizations, 14 deaths; increase of four cases
• Spotsylvania County: 8,140 cases, 267 hospitalizations, 89 deaths; increase of 19 cases, one hospitalization and one death
• Stafford County: 9,341 cases, 301 hospitalizations, 61 deaths; increase of eight cases and three deaths