Florida reported its fewest new cases of COVID-19 since the end of September Monday.
The Florida Department of Health said 1,613 people tested positive for the coronavirus since Sunday's report. That's about one-fifth the daily average number of cases reported during the past week.
That trend was repeated in the greater Tampa Bay area, where 355 cases were reported on Monday — the fewest number of positive cases since the middle of October. That's also significantly less than the average for last week. Hillsborough County had the lion's share of cases in the area, with 121 new cases reported.
The deaths of seven people in the region from complications of the coronavirus were recorded Monday, including five in Manatee County. Statewide, 35 deaths were reported. The death toll in Florida since last March now stands at 35,720 people.
But the positivity rate for new cases remains high at 8%. That's on 24,169 tests returned Sunday — which is almost 80,000 tests lower than the daily average for the last week. Anything above 5 percent means a high percentage of people who are being tested end up positive for COVID-19.
State Totals (as of Monday, April 12)
- Positive Tests – 2,125,846
- Deaths – 34,720
Daily Changes:
- State: Positive Tests – 1,613| Deaths – 37
- Greater Tampa Bay region: Positive Tests – 355 | Deaths –7
Daily Testing (statewide):
- Tests Received – 24,169 | Positivity Rate – 8.0%
ABOUT THE DATA: The Florida Department of Health produces a daily update around 11 a.m. with information about COVID-19 cases and deaths that were reported over the previous 24 hours. Cases and deaths in the report may have happened days or weeks earlier, according to state officials. The state separately tracks cases and deaths that occurred on specific days on its dashboard and those totals are frequently updated.
Florida COVID-19 daily total of positive tests/deaths for the last two weeks:
- April 12: 1,613/37
- April 11: 5,520/7
- April 10: 6,906/50
- April 9: 7,121/64
- April 8: 7,939/86
- April 7: 5,885/42
- April 6: 5,556/70
- April 5: 3,480/36
- April 4: 4,794/22
- April 3: 6,017/67
- April 2: 6,490/96
- April 1: 6,790/71
- March 31: 5,294/89
- March 30: 5,062/92
