Nevada reports 655 new COVID-19 cases; Clark County back on elevated risk
Nevada on Thursday reported 655 additional cases of the coronavirus, along with seven more deaths, according to state data.
The updated figures posted to the Department of Health and Human Services’ coronavirus website brought totals in the state to 87,969 cases since the start of the pandemic, along with 1,698 deaths.
Clark County was placed back on elevated risk status on Thursday, about two weeks after it was removed from the category, according to state data.
State officials on Sept. 28 said Clark County was removed from the list at the time due to a high number of tests performed and a decrease in the test positivity rate.
Counties are considered at an elevated risk if they meet two of three criteria: fewer than 100 average daily tests per 100,000 people in the county, more than 200 total cases per 100,000 people diagnosed and reported in the past 30 days, or a test positivity rate over two weeks of more than 8 percent when there are also more than 50 cases per 100,000 people — according to the state health department’s website.
Other counties considered elevated risk as of Thursday are Lincoln, Lyon and Washoe, state data shows.
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The state’s positivity rate, which is calculated by the Review-Journal as the total cases divided by the total people tested, rose by 0.09 percent to reach 11.8 percent on Thursday. The rate has been rising slowly since mid-September.
As of Thursday, there have been 745,344 people tested for the virus throughout Nevada, the department said.
In Clark County, an 412 additional cases were reported on Thursday, along with three more deaths, according to the Southern Nevada Health District.
The updated data brought totals in the county to 73,154 cases and 1,461 deaths. The county health district estimates that 66,916 people in the county have recovered from the virus.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter. Review-Journal staff writer Michael Scott Davidson contributed to this report.
