Nevada sees 17 COVID-19 deaths, biggest 1-day spike since Sept. 4
The state saw the largest single-day increase in coronavirus-related deaths in more than a month on Wednesday, with 17 reported.
The increase in fatalities marked the highest spike since Sept. 4, when 18 deaths were reported in Nevada, according to state data.
In addition to the deaths, an additional 479 new cases were reported in the state. The updated figures posted to the Department of Health and Human Services’ website brought totals in the state to 87,314 cases and 1,691 deaths.
The state’s positivity rate, calculated by the Review-Journal as the number of cases divided by the number of people who have been tested, increased slightly to 11.71 percent on Wednesday. The rate has been slowly rising since mid-September.
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The state health department, which calculates the positivity rate based on the number of total tests administered, reported a cumulative rate of 9.7 percent on Tuesday. The state-calculated rate has stayed the same for about a week.
The state’s methodology yields lower figures because many people get tested multiple times, increasing the numbers upon which the percentages are based, which in turn lowers the percentages.
In Clark County, 303 additional cases were reported on Wednesday, along with 13 additional deaths. Totals in the county rose to 72,742 cases and 1,458 fatalities, according to the Southern Nevada Health District.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.