The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported on Thursday 2,686 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the state's total to 363,046.
Tulsa County had 469 of Thursday's cases. Its total now stands at 59,629, second to Oklahoma County's 70,543.
The state's seven-day average of new cases, which shows the trend in infections, fell for the eighth day in a row, dropping from 2,714 to 2,649, its lowest point since Dec. 31. The record of 4,256 was set last Wednesday. Oct. 5 was the last time the seven-day average was below 1,000.
Tulsa County's seven-day average also dropped for the eighth day in a row, falling from 491 to 478, its lowest point since Dec. 30. The record is 647, set Jan. 9.
The dramatic decline in reported cases over the past few days prompted the state health department to review the data and check its reporting system.
"After checking with staff and comparing different sources of information, we can report the data is accurate and our case count has been significantly down this week. This is great news for our state, and follows a trend of decreased cases we are seeing broadly nationwide. We are hopeful this trend will continue and are cautiously optimistic," State Health Commissioner Dr. Lance Frye said in a statement.
The state reported 55 deaths. When deaths occurred is not reported. Nine Tulsa County residents were among the deaths: two women and seven men 65 or older.
Since March 18, COVID-19 has officially killed 3,140 Oklahomans, 518 of them Tulsa County residents. Only Oklahoma County has reported more deaths, with 519. The state has reported an average of 36.9 deaths the past seven days, the most to date.
There were 1,722 Oklahomans with positive COVID tests hospitalized on Wednesday evening, 54 fewer than on Tuesday and the fewest since Dec. 18. The highest number so far was 1,994 hospitalized on Jan. 5. There were 449 COVID-positive Oklahomans in intensive care units on Wednesday, 25 fewer than on Tuesday and the fewest since Dec. 22.
According to the state health department, Tulsa County had 367 COVID-positive residents hospitalized as of Wednesday evening, 36 fewer than on Tuesday and the fewest since Nov. 24.
Over the course of the pandemic, 20,505 Oklahomans have been hospitalized for COVID-19.
As of Wednesday, the state reported 4% of its adult ICU beds and 13% of its medical surgery beds were available. Also as of Wednesday, 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 ranged from 35% to 37% the past several days. The Tulsa region has hovered around 23% the past few days.
The state health department reported 3,895 additional patients as recovered on Thursday, bringing the total to 327,135. 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 32,771 active cases of COVID-19, 1,264 fewer than the day before. The record is 43,163, set Jan. 11.
Tulsa County reported 653 additional patients as recovered, bringing the total to 53,657. The county has 5,454 active cases, 193 fewer than the day before. The record is 6,731, set Jan. 11.
The state's reported overall positive test rate was 11.4% on Wednesday, up 0.1 percentage points from Tuesday. Out of 12,985 tests reported on Wednesday, 14.6% 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 Wednesday, that rate was 12%, up 0.1 percentage points from Tuesday.
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.
