The Latest: More than one-third of Mississippi coronavirus deaths have been in long-term facilities

Published 12:03 pm Thursday, April 30, 2020

Mississippi’s COVID-19 coronavirus cases and deaths continue to climb, the Mississippi State Health Department reported Thursday, citing that 35 percent of deaths connected to the virus were residents of long-term care facilities.

The number of patients hospitalized with the virus also inched up to another new all-time high, for the third-consecutive day.

State health officials reported 246 new cases. It was the 22nd day in a row the number of new cases rose by more than 100 cases.

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The state reported 11 more people died in the state over the last 24 hours due to the virus, bringing the state’s total number of deaths to 261. The state reported that 93 deaths were of residents of long-term care facilities.

Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said the number of deaths of residents of long-term care facilities was “probably an increasing concern.”

“That’s where the virus can spread easily if the conditions are right for that to happen and we also know that’s a vulnerable population,” Dobbs said Thursday afternoon. “I know people are really anxious to go see their relatives in long-term care and congregant settings but please be patient and know that we’re working diligently to try and protect them as much as possible.”

Thursday’s update showed 436 people were hospitalized with coronavirus. Another 203 patients suspected of having coronavirus, but not yet confirmed by testing, were also hospitalized, the state reported.

The state said 166 patients were in ICU beds and 72 required mechanical ventilation.

The state also tracks the number cases found in long-term care facilities such as nursing homes that are considered high risk due to their residents being in close confines, often being older and often having underlying health issues.

For the sake of reporting, the state considers even a single case of coronavirus among staff or residents of these facilities as an “outbreak” and are tracked by county below.

Here are the county by county numbers:

County Total Cases Total Deaths Total Cases in LTC Facilities
Adams 133 8 *
Alcorn 10 1 *
Amite 29 0 *
Attala 99 0 *
Benton 11 0 *
Bolivar 102 7 *
Calhoun 50 3 *
Carroll 38 1 *
Chickasaw 68 7 *
Choctaw 13 1 *
Claiborne 22 0 *
Clarke 54 3 *
Clay 40 2 *
Coahoma 61 3 *
Copiah 96 1 *
Covington 62 0 *
Desoto 282 4 *
Forrest 207 12 *
Franklin 16 1 *
George 13 1 *
Greene 5 1 *
Grenada 28 0 *
Hancock 62 5 *
Harrison 174 6 *
Hinds 470 8 *
Holmes 133 5 *
Humphreys 23 3 *
Itawamba 57 3 *
Jackson 259 6 *
Jasper 42 1 *
Jefferson 18 0 *
Jefferson Davis 32 1 *
Jones 143 1 *
Kemper 57 2 *
Lafayette 89 3 *
Lamar 103 2 *
Lauderdale 349 20 *
Lawrence 45 0 *
Leake 204 2 *
Lee 69 4 *
Leflore 148 17 *
Lincoln 141 10 *
Lowndes 54 2 *
Madison 229 8 *
Marion 72 6 *
Marshall 43 2 *
Monroe 157 14 *
Montgomery 28 1 *
Neshoba 187 3 *
Newton 81 0 *
Noxubee 66 0 *
Oktibbeha 51 3 *
Panola 39 2 *
Pearl River 163 19 *
Perry 27 1 *
Pike 148 7 *
Pontotoc 18 2 *
Prentiss 32 1 *
Quitman 14 0 *
Rankin 186 5 *
Scott 316 0 *
Sharkey 5 0 *
Simpson 46 0 *
Smith 74 4 *
Stone 22 0 *
Sunflower 53 2 *
Tallahatchie 11 1 *
Tate 41 0 *
Tippah 54 7 *
Tishomingo 7 0 *
Tunica 35 1 *
Union 17 1 *
Walthall 31 0 *
Warren 68 2 *
Washington 77 3 *
Wayne 23 0 *
Webster 18 1 *
Wilkinson 69 7 *
Winston 42 0 *
Yalobusha 19 0 *
Yazoo 135 1 *
Total 6,815 261 *

* Updated cases for long-term care facilities are not available today. Please look for revised totals on Friday.

For more detailed graphics on Mississippi’s coronavirus statistics, please visit:

https://www.magnoliastatelive.com/video-mississippis-coronavirus-case-by-the-numbers/