PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia continues to report high numbers of COVID-19 deaths as state health officials input death certificates mostly related to the post-holiday coronavirus surge.

Virginia reported 149 new deaths on Wednesday, and has reported 709 total in the last five days.

Statewide numbers

  • New cases: (+1,907, 568,946 total), (1,908 per day on average, record is 6,166)
  • Case incidence rate: 22.4 per 100K people, down from 72 in late January
  • New deaths (+149, 7,807 total), back up to record average after big trend down (105 per day 7-day average, was at 19 per day last Friday)
  • Current hospitalizations (-57, 1,564 total), steadily trending down
  • Testing (8% 7-day average of positive tests), trending down for more than a month, testing down (about 20K per day on average)
  • Doses administered (1,667,353 total doses, 31,923 per day on average, 516,655 fully vaccinated, 13.5% with at least one dose
  • Doses distributed (2,121,485 total), 93% first doses administered and 56.4% second doses administered, Virginia still only getting about 130,000 first doses per week

The good news is that COVID-19 hospitalizations are steadily trending down as more vaccines are administered.

Cases are down significantly from that post-holiday surge, but still remain relatively high around 2,000 cases per day.

Virginia is getting some extra help from the federal pharmacy program this week, with major pharmacies such as Walgreens and more going online. Pharmacy providers are now getting 52,000 doses per week (CVS gets 26K of those) in addition to Virginia’s 130,000 first doses per week.

Still, getting a vaccine appointment with the federal pharmacy providers is still proving difficult for many. Basically, you’ve got to keep checking pharmacies’ websites in hopes of finding a slot.

Gov. Ralph Northam is also set to provide updates on Wednesday in a briefing. He’s expected to announce the lifting of some restrictions.

Cases, deaths and hospitalizations are also trending down overall nationwide. Though the U.S. is still reporting 2,000-plus COVID-19 deaths per day and just recently passed 500,000.

Local cases

  • Accomack: 2,575 cases, 182 hospitalized, 35 deaths (+3 cases,)
  • Chesapeake: 17,974 cases, 830 hospitalized, 165 deaths (+61 cases, +4 hospitalized, +4 deaths)
  • Franklin: 971 cases, 49 hospitalized, 26 deaths (+6 cases, +1 hospitalized)
  • Gloucester: 1,831 cases, 51 hospitalized, 32 deaths (+6 cases, +1 death)
  • Hampton: 8,494 cases, 288 hospitalized, 99 deaths (+23 cases, +1 hospitalized, +1 death)
  • Isle of Wight: 2,607 cases, 111 hospitalized, 48 deaths (+15 cases, +1 hospitalized)
  • James City County: 3,819 cases, 124 hospitalized, 48 deaths (+4 cases)
  • Mathews: 541 cases, 18 hospitalized, 9 deaths (+3 cases)
  • Newport News: 11,267 cases, 308 hospitalized, 140 deaths (+53 cases, +2 deaths)
  • Norfolk: 14,686 cases, 791 hospitalized, 168 deaths (+1 cases, +4 hospitalized, +2 deaths)
  • Northampton: 707 cases, 71 hospitalized, 32 deaths (+3 cases, + 1 hospitalized)
  • Poquoson: 706 cases, 20 hospitalized, 12 deaths (+6 cases)
  • Portsmouth: 7,581 cases, 575 hospitalized, 131 deaths (+33 cases, +1 hospitalized, +1 death)
  • Southampton: 1,841 cases, 48 hospitalized, 50 deaths (+2 cases)
  • Suffolk: 6,802 cases, 382 hospitalized, 145 deaths (+27 cases, +5 hospitalized, +5 deaths)
  • Virginia Beach: 30,161 cases, 1,264 hospitalized, 280 deaths (+110 cases, +18 cases, +9 deaths)
  • Williamsburg: 514 cases, 24 hospitalized, 9 deaths (no change)
  • York: 2,967 cases, 52 hospitalized, 29 deaths (+15 cases, +2 hospitalized, +2 deaths)