SCDHEC Update Feb. 2, 2021

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On Tuesday (Feb. 2) DHEC reported 1,554 new cases and 40 probable cases of COVID-19. DHEC also reported 32 new confirmed deaths and 4 probable deaths related to COVID.
There were 25,112 tests reported. The positivity rate, which has been hovering around 20 percent for several weeks, was reported at 8.8 percent.

(Note: DHEC is now reporting percent positive using the tests-over-tests method. Percent positive is now calculated by dividing all positive COVID-19 tests by the total number of COVID-19 tests (positive and negative), and then multiplying the result by 100 to get a percent. Previously, DHEC had been calculating percent positive using the people-over-tests method. That required dividing the number of people with positive results by the number of people who had taken tests overall, which included positive and negative results.
According to DHEC, the change will allow comparisons with percent positivity calculations provided by the CDC, The White House Coronavirus Task Force, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), other academic institutions and many states. In December, CMS began requiring health care facilities to use test over test; DHEC began preparing for the change at that time.)
There were 1832 COVID patients in hospitals across the state with 401 in ICU and 245 on ventilators.