Florida has confirmed 776,000 cases of COVID-19 since March

State has now reported 16,620 coronavirus-related deaths

Healthcare workers gather information before conducting an antigen test, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020, at a COVID-19 testing site outside Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. State officials say Florida has surpassed 500,000 coronavirus cases. Meanwhile, testing is ramping up following a temporary shutdown of some sites because of Tropical Storm Isaias. Antigen testing reveals whether a person is currently infected with COVID-19. It differs from antibody testing because once the infection is gone, antigens won't be present. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee) (Wilfredo Lee, Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The same day President Donald Trump cast his ballot in Florida, opting to vote in person early rather than mail-in his ballot as he did for the 2018 mid-term election, the state department of health’s report showed another 4,471 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Sunshine State.

That pushed Florida total to 776,251 cases of coronavirus since the pandemic hit the state in March.

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In Northeast Florida, Duval County added another 231 cases in Saturday’s report to reach a total of 34,177. Alachua County added 94 cases and is near 10,000 total.

This week, Florida moved past New Jersey to have the fourth-highest number of COVID-19 deaths in the country, according to totals posted Thursday on a Johns Hopkins University website that tracks national and international data.

Florida added another 76 total deaths in Saturday’s report and now sits at 16,620 fatalities related to COVID-19.

The additional deaths Saturday included one added in Duval County, which has now reported 513 total, and two in St. Johns County, which has now reported 80 deaths since March. The added death in Duval County involved an 85-year-old whose case was first counted July 16.

That comes as the state says it plans to more closely scrutinize the reporting of deaths attributed to coronavirus, saying some listed as COVID-19 fatalities died months after testing positive.

The rates of positive tests have been fluctuating in recent days, dropping from 5.59% statewide in Thursday’s data to 4.00% in Friday’s report and then to 3.68% in Saturday’s data.

Hospitalizations for the disease, however, have remained roughly stable over the past month, with between 2,000 and 2,200 being treated in Florida hospitals, according to a state online census of hospital beds.

Those figures compare with peaks of close to 10,000 in late July.

Several Northeast Florida counties saw their positivity rates remain below 5% in Saturday’s report, while Alachua, Nassau, Flagler, Baker and Union counties all ranged between 5.19% and 7.83% positivity rate.

Florida vs. Duval County daily cases diagnosed since June 1