The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported on Wednesday 3,305 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the state's total to 311,573.
Tulsa County had 409 of Wednesday's cases. Its total now stands at 51,319, second to Oklahoma County's 61,336.
The state's seven-day average of new cases, which shows the trend in infections, remains at record levels. It rose from 3,498 to 3,506. The record is 3,562, set on Sunday. The average had dipped to around 2,600 as reporting lagged around the Christmas and New Year's holidays. Oct. 5 was the last time the seven-day average was below 1,000.
Tulsa County's seven-day average climbed from 559 to 594. The record of 607 was set Jan. 4. KWGS is calculating the county's seven-day average based on days with cases reported. The Tulsa Health Department officially recorded zero cases on Jan. 1, when the state did not report cases. The state has specified a number of cases that would have been reported Jan. 1.
The state reported 62 deaths, the most in a single day to date. In Tulsa County, a man 36 to 49 years old, two men 50 to 64 years old and 10 adults 65 or older were reported dead. Statewide, two adults 18 to 35 years old, two adults 36 to 49, two men 50 to 64 and 43 adults 65 or older were also reported dead.
Since March 18, COVID-19 has officially killed 2,633 Oklahomans, 429 of them Tulsa County residents. The state has reported an average of 25.7 deaths the past seven days.
There were 1,994 Oklahomans with positive COVID tests hospitalized on Tuesday evening, 85 more than on Monday and a new high. There were 494 COVID-positive Oklahomans in intensive care units on Tuesday, six more than on Monday.
According to the state health department, Tulsa County had 447 COVID-positive residents hospitalized as of Tuesday evening, four more than on Monday and a new high for a second straight day.
Over the course of the pandemic, 17,886 Oklahomans have been hospitalized for COVID-19.
As of Tuesday, the state reported 4% of its adult ICU beds and 11% of its medical surgery beds were available. Also as of Tuesday, seven of Oklahoma's eight hospital regions are at tier three of a four-tier hospital surge plan, meaning 20% to 40% of patients have tested positive for COVID-19 for at least three consecutive days. The northwest region is currently at tier two. The OKC region has seen several days in the past week with 37% to 39% of patients with COVID. The Tulsa region has hovered around 25% the past several days.
The state health department reported 2,964 additional patients as recovered on Wednesday, bringing the total to 274,657. Patients are considered to have recovered if they did not die, are not currently hospitalized and it has been at least 14 days since their symptoms began. Symptoms have been reported to linger for several weeks for some individuals.
The state has 34,283 active cases of COVID-19, 279 more than the day before. The record is 36,646, set on Monday.
Tulsa County reported 417 additional patients as recovered, bringing the total to 45,751. The county has 5,139 active cases, 21 fewer than the day before. The record is 5,785, set Dec. 21.
The state's reported overall positive test rate was 11.1% on Tuesday, up 0.1 percentage points from Monday. Out of 24,539 tests reported on Tuesday, 25.5% were positive. Each positive test does not necessarily represent a unique individual.
The state used to report its cumulative positive test rate, a metric used by Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. It is calculated by dividing the number of cases by the number of negative tests plus the number of cases. As of Tuesday, that rate was 11.2%, unchanged from Monday.
Johns Hopkins uses the different rate to compare states that may track testing differently. It notes the ideal way to calculate the positivity rate is dividing the number of people who test positive by the number of people who are tested, which is how Oklahoma's overall rate is calculated.
The World Health Organization's benchmark indicating adequate testing is a 5% positive test rate.
