Pa. Health Dept: 71% of Pa. adults fully vaccinated; Nearly 5K new COVID-19 cases

By: John L. Micek - October 21, 2021 11:59 am

(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed 4,998 new cases of COVID-19 in the commonwealth on Thursday, up from Wednesday’s tally of 3,584 new cases, bringing the statewide total to more than 1.52 million cases since the start of the pandemic.

As of midday Thursday, 2,929 individuals were hospitalized with the virus. Of that number, 668 patients were in the intensive care unit and 388 patients were using a ventilator, according to data posted to the agency’s pandemic tracking website.

The department also confirmed 94 new deaths attributed to COVID-19, bringing the total number of deaths attributed to the virus to 30,815 since the start of the pandemic.

As of Thursday, the statewide positivity rate remained at 9.7 percent, and 71 percent of Pennsylvanians 18 or older were fully vaccinated, according to the department.

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John L. Micek

A 3-decade veteran of the news business, John L. Micek is the Pennsylvania Capital-Star's Editor-in-Chief. An award-winning political reporter, Micek’s career has taken him from small town meetings and Chicago City Hall to Congress and the Pennsylvania Capitol. His weekly column on U.S. politics is syndicated to 800 newspapers nationwide by Cagle Syndicate. He also contributes commentary and analysis to broadcast outlets in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. Micek’s first novel, “Ordinary Angels,” was released in 2019 by Sunbury Press.