Florida continued its new-record streak of COVID-19 infections, reporting nearly 76,000 new cases on Friday, while also increasing the number of tests administered and hospitalizations.
The 75,962 new cases reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) represented a new daily record for Florida, bringing the total in the state to 4,165,962 since the start of the pandemic.
Due to the rapid transmission of the omicron variant and increased testing, Florida has set a record for new daily cases throughout the week, with 58,013 reported on Thursday, 52,995 on Wednesday, 33,567 on Tuesday and 29,129 on Monday.
COVID hospitalizations increased by 484 on Friday, reaching 4,485, according to the Florida Hospital Association. The figure is still a long way from the peak of 17,100 hospitalizations during last summer’s wave of delta-variant infections.
Hospitalizations in the state have increased by more than 144% in the last week, although more than 25% of beds for adults in Intensive Care Units (ICU) are available.
The total number of deaths in the state associated with COVID-19 stood at 62,480 on Friday.
In Miami-Dade County, the positivity rate reached 26% on Friday, with 135 COVID patients in ICUs.
A total of 68,553 tests were administered Thursday in Miami-Dade, also representing a new record, according to Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
