OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma health officials reported 1,721 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases Sunday, and 19 more deaths linked to the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
The Oklahoma State Department of Health said the new counts bring the state to a total of 195,545 case of the virus and 1,736 fatalities.
The actual number of cases is believed to be far higher because many people haven’t been tested and some who get the disease don’t show symptoms.
The counts come as the pandemic has grown worse across the state. Infectious diseases experts have warned that Thanksgiving could cause spikes in testing and delays in processing that may make the resulting figures difficult to interpret.
Over the last seven days, more than 21% of coronavirus tests in Oklahoma have come back positive, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up within weeks. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal. The vast majority of people recover.
