The Lead

Pa. Health Dept.: More than 5,100 new cases of COVID-19; More than 2,500 hospitalized

By: John L. Micek - November 5, 2021 12:49 pm

The Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed 5,130 new cases of COVID-19 in the commonwealth on Thursday, bringing the statewide total to more than 1.58 million since the start of the pandemic.

As of midday Friday, 2,576 people were hospitalized with the virus. Of those patients, 592 were in hospital intensive care units, and 360 were using a ventilator, according to data posted to the agency’s pandemic tracking website.

The department also confirmed 72 new deaths attributed to COVID-19 as of Friday, bringing the total number of deaths attributed to the virus to 31,855 since the start of the pandemic, state data showed.

As of Friday, the statewide positivity rate remained at 8.8 percent, and 72.2 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.