SC reports 1,617 new COVID-19 cases, 26 more deaths Saturday - WIS10

(WIS) - The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) has announced 1,617 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and 26 additional confirmed deaths Saturday, Feb.

Today’s report brings the total number of people with confirmed cases since the outbreak began to 434,589 and confirmed deaths to 7,352.

Of the 26 deaths reported, 3 were middle-aged people (35 to 64 years old), and 23 were elderly (65 and older).

Three of the deaths reported today happened in late January, but most of them happened in the past week, DHEC reported.

DHEC also announced 398 new probable cases of the virus and 17 new probable deaths.

That brings the total of probable cases to 66,688 and the total number of probable deaths to 904 in the state since the outbreak began.

To see virus spread by county, check out the link below of new confirmed and probable cases.

When daily case numbers are high and the percent positive is high, that indicates more virus spread in the community, DHEC said.

There are 1,086 hospitalized patients who have COVID-19 or are suspected of having it and awaiting a test, DHEC said.

17, DHEC has estimated 90% of people who didn’t die from the virus, and that they have “symptom onset data” for, have recovered.

The rest of those people are still fighting the virus, DHEC says.

Note that this data is only available for about 60% of the total COVID-19 cases reported in South Carolina.

When looking at the confirmed numbers of cases and deaths, the death toll from the virus is about 1.69% in South Carolina.

On June 18, 2020, DHEC announced it would begin reporting probable cases and deaths.

A probable death, according to DHEC, is a person whose death certificate lists COVID-19 or SARS-CoV-2 as a cause of death or a significant condition contributing to death but did not undergo confirmatory viral testing.

Some people who have the virus don’t show any symptoms, but they can still spread it to others.

The mortality rate for people with the virus was first widely reported around 2 to 3%, but health experts noted at the time that the actual percentage was not that high, as not all cases are diagnosed or reported.