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Pennsylvania recorded 1,110 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, according to state-run COVID ALERT PA.
The seven-day average of new cases in Pennsylvania reached 815 on Wednesday – more than five times more than on July 4, according to the Johns Hopkins follow-up.
The number of people critically ill with COVID-19 in Pennsylvania has also increased, with 473 hospitalized as of Friday morning, up from 13 compared to Thursday. The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 has increased by more than 200 in less than two weeks.
The intensive care number, 101, is up 14 from the previous day, according to the Pennsylvania Tracking Dashboard.
Pennsylvania recorded eight new deaths from COVID-19 on Friday, bringing its toll to 27,850.
Cases are increasing in much of the United States, with areas with the lowest vaccination rates recording the largest increases in cases and hospitalizations.
But unlike some areas like Arkansas and Missouri, intensive care beds are still available for free in Pennsylvania.
Nearly 3,500 intensive care beds were available in Pennsylvania as of Friday morning, according to the tracking dashboard.
Although Pennsylvania now has a day chain of 1,000 or more new confirmed or probable infections, new infections remain well below the seven-day maximum average of 10,563 in December, according to Johns Hopkins.
Still, the volume of new cases represents a disappointing reversal from the start of the month, when the seven-day average reached 161 on July 4.
Pennsylvania’s 14-day average hospitalization was 356 on Friday, up from 265 on July 20.
The most contagious delta variant is blamed for surges. Acting Health Secretary Alison Beam this week, citing figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the delta accounted for about 65% of new cases in Pennsylvania.
That would make it less common in Pennsylvania than in parts of the country, especially those with lower vaccination rates.
Delta has caused a return to indoor face mask requirements or recommendations in parts of the country, as well as a wave of businesses and government entities demanding that employees be vaccinated against COVID-19.
President Joe Biden this week announced vaccination requirements for federal employees and contractors.
In Pennsylvania, about three dozen colleges and universities have announced vaccination requirements. Penn Medicine, a large Philadelphia-based hospital system, requires all employees to be fully immunized by September 1.
However, Beam said this week that while Gov. Tom Wolf supports entities in need of vaccination, there is no statewide mandate for vaccination.
She also said the state is not considering reinstating the face mask mandate.
On the contrary, she said Pennsylvania was counting on the vaccination to quell the increase in the number of new cases.
As of Thursday, 78.1% of Pennsylvanians aged 18 or older had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, tied for eighth in the country, according to the New York Times.
However, the percentage of fully vaccinated adults in Pennsylvania, 62.8%, ranks 21st.
Pennsylvania, while having an overwhelming number of residents who have started the vaccination process, faces a problem of non-follow-up.
This week, Beam said Pennsylvania knows about 250,000 residents who received one dose but did not return for the second dose needed for a full vaccination. Beam said the state will text them next week as part of an effort to get a higher percentage of Pennsylvanians fully immunized.
She pointed out that even though months have passed, they don’t have to start over.
Nationally, 49.3% of adults are fully immunized.
The national pace of vaccination has picked up, in part thanks to some prominent Republicans and Evangelical leaders urging people to get vaccinated and pointing to the danger posed by the delta variant.
These include Republican U.S. Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, who blamed misinformation for preventing people from getting vaccinated.
“There is bad advice, you know. Apparently you see it everywhere: people who practice medicine without a license, give bad advice. And this bad advice must be ignored, ”McConnell told Reuters news agency.
Another is Alabama Governor Kay Ivey, who said people “pushing false news and conspiracy theories on this vaccine are reckless and do great damage,” according to Reuters.
She further said it was “time to start blaming the unvaccinated” for the new wave of COVID-19.
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