Weekly Covid-19 report shows increase in daily cases, hospitalizations

The Delaware Division of Public Health reported a rising  number of Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations in its weekly report.

This week, the number of fully vaccinated Delawareans passed the 500,000 mark. That is equivalent to slightly more than half of the state’s population, based on 2020 Census figures.

Highlights

• A total of 121,283 positive cases of Covid-19 among Delaware residents have been reported to the state since March 11, 2020.
• The seven-day average of new positive cases increased to 396.7 as of Sept. 2.
• About 12% of the state’s population has tested positive for the virus.
• Delaware residents can now access their Covid-19 vaccination records. (See below) 
• The seven-day average for the percentage of total positive tests that were positive was 7.6%, an increase from 7.4%.
• 233 individuals are currently hospitalized due to Covid-19  in Delaware, an increase of 23 from last week. Forty-eight of the hospitalized persons are critically ill, an increase of 14 from last week.   
• A total of 1,888 Delawareans have passed away due to complications from Covid-19.
• Thirteen deaths were reported in the past week, seven of which were from a review of vital statistics. The total number of individuals who have died from Covid-19 range from younger than 5 to 104 years old.

Vaccination records available

Delawareans can now access their immunization record through the DelVAX Public Access Portal. Parents and legal guardians can print official immunization records for their child/children (ages 0 through 17 years), and adults (ages 18 years and over) can print an official immunization record for themselves.

For information and link for the DelVAX Public Access Portal – https://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/ipp/portalflyer.pdf. This portal will assist those who need to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination but may have lost their vaccination card. 

While DPH does not replace the card, Delawareans now have an easier way to access their vaccination record.

 DelVAX is the official record for a person’s vaccination data. Individuals who need assistance can call 1-800-282-8672, or email DelVAX@delaware.gov. Responses to emails and calls received after regular business hours or weekends may take up to 48 hours.

Vaccinations  

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 76.3% of Delawareans ages 18 and over have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

As of  September 3,  a total of 1,123,792 administered doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been reported to the state’s immunization information system, DelVAX.

Among Delawareans 12+, 559,801 have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 500,441 Delawareans are fully vaccinated. Delaware’s latest COVID-19 vaccination statistics can be found under the Vaccine Tracker dashboard at de.gov/healthycommunity.   

  Vaccination status report:  

The following report captures a weekly breakdown of vaccination status for cases, deaths, and hospitalizations from Aug. 23 to Aug. 29.

Breakthrough cases:  

To date, 500,441 Delawareans have been fully vaccinated.

There have been 1,843 breakthrough cases of Covid-19, occurring in approximately four-tenths of one percent of vaccinated individuals. Forty-five of the reported breakthrough cases identified since vaccinations began involved hospitalizations and 21 individuals passed away, although it does not mean Covid-19 was the cause of death.

Breakthrough cases continue to be rare given the total number of fully vaccinated persons, although the percentage of such cases has increased.

A breakthrough case is defined as testing positive for Covid-19 after an individual has been fully vaccinated for two weeks or more – although it does not mean that the infection actually occurred after vaccination. 

Variant Cases in Delaware:  

The Division of Public Health has identified the following Covid-19 variants in Delaware through routine surveillance of test specimens as of Friday.

These variants are based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) list of Variants of Concern and Variants of Interest. The below table lists cumulative totals.

Of the test samples sequenced in the last week, 159 (69.4%) of the 229 test samples sequenced at the DPH Lab were positive for a variant strain, as were two additional specimens sequenced at an outside lab. Ninety-nine percent of the 161 variant positive samples this week were identified as the Delta variant strain.  

    Sussex counties next week. COVID-19 testing will be available at each location.