Va. COVID-19 cases rose 30.8% since last week

839 dead from coronavirus in commonwealth

Published May 9, 2020 by Richard Foster

UPDATED MAY 10

The number of confirmed and probable coronavirus cases in Virginia rose by 30.8% between May 2 and May 9. During his May 8 news briefing about the state’s plan to begin the phased reopening of Virginia businesses, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said such increases are expected and due in part to increased COVID-19 testing by the state and local health departments.

Virginia saw 885 new coronavirus cases on May 10 and 854 new coronavirus cases on May 9, bringing the commonwealth’s total count of confirmed and probable cases to 24,081 as of Sunday, May 10, according to the Virginia Department of Health. Statewide, 839 people have died from the virus.

Reports Friday that a child under the age of 9 had died from the coronavirus in Virginia turned out to be erroneous and were due to a data entry error, VDH said.

More than 1,550 Virginians are hospitalized due to COVID-19 and 3,201 people with COVID-19 have been hospitalized and discharged in the commonwealth since the pandemic began in March, according to the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association.

As Gov. Ralph Northam’s proposed limited reopening date of May 15 approaches, a key statistic — the percentage of positive cases set against the total number of tests given — has largely decreased, with 17% of people tested May 9 showing positive tests, down from a high of 22% from April 17-22.

These are the localities with 400 or more cases in the commonwealth, as of May 10:

Fairfax County: 5,892
Prince William County: 2,740
Arlington County: 1,368
Alexandria: 1,193
Loudoun County: 1,159
Henrico County: 1,067
Chesterfield County: 787
Harrisonburg: 579
Richmond: 530
Accomack County: 508
Virginia Beach: 491

Globally, there are 4.04 million reported COVID-19 cases and 279,705 confirmed deaths, as of May 10. In the United States, which has the most confirmed cases and deaths worldwide, there are 1.3 million confirmed cases and 78,794 deaths attributed to the coronavirus. More than 19,800 people are reported dead from COVID-19 in New York City alone.

Below is the latest data from VDH: