The average weekly number of covid-19 hospitalizations in Allegheny County nearly doubled over the past month, according to state Department of Health data, as those numbers begin ticking upward to match the rising case counts.
The seven-day average of hospitalizations on July 3 in Allegheny County was 30. On Wednesday, that average was just over 60.
The state’s real-time data dashboard showed 72 covid patients hospitalized in Allegheny County on Wednesday afternoon. Nineteen of them were in an intensive care unit.
Dr. Debra Bogen, director of the county Health Department, said in a briefing Wednesday that a majority of hospitalized patients are people who are not vaccinated.
After weeks of low case counts and positivity rates as vaccines became widely available, Allegheny County is again averaging more than 100 cases per day. Pennsylvania as a whole is averaging more than 1,000.
Four weeks ago, the statewide daily average was about 173.
In Allegheny County, the health department reported 268 new cases over the preceding 48 hours. The percent positivity rate this week climbed to 3.7%, up from 2.7% the week before.
Bogen said the official number of positive tests is likely just “the tip of the iceberg” because those who are vaccinated and contract the virus might have few if any symptoms and thus not seek testing.
“This late summer surge is due to the delta variant,” Bogen said. She noted that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than 66% of the cases in this region are caused by the delta variant.
Though the county does not have concrete numbers regarding breakthrough infections, numbers from the company that does the county’s testing, Curative, indicate that about 20% of people who tested positive over the past 28 days were vaccinated.
Bogen said an increase in positive tests among vaccinated people is not surprising.
“We expect to see more of those as the number of people vaccinated increases,” she said.
In Allegheny County, about 68% of residents are fully vaccinated.
Earlier this week, the county – and most surrounding counties — rose to the “substantial transmission” level as defined by the CDC. Reaching that level of community spread triggers updated guidance from the CDC to go into effect: That is, everyone should mask up indoors regardless of vaccination status.
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said a county-level mask mandate is not being considered for now.
Megan Guza is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Megan at 412-380-8519, mguza@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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