CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As of Tuesday morning there were 15,816 confirmed COVID-19 cases in 99 counties in North Carolina. There are 521 people hospitalized and there have been 597 deaths.
“We are seeing our day over day new case counts being about stable. We’re somewhere between 400-600 new cases a day. Numbers are leveling,” said Dr. Mandy Cohen, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
Key Facts:
- Cases in North Carolina: 15,816 with 597 deaths. From Tuesday to Wednesday the state is reporting 470 new cases. Monday to Tuesday the state reported 301 new cases.
- Cases in South Carolina: 7,927 with 355 deaths. Confirmed cases have increased by 147 from Monday. A total of 355 people have died, an increase of 9 from Monday. Dr. Linda Bell, the state's epidemiologist with DHEC, says the curve of cases for the illness appears to be leveling in the state.
- Cases in Mecklenburg County: 2,195 with and 63 deaths — The average number of COVID-19 hospitalizations has decreased over the last 14 days, according to county statistics. An average of 7% of people tested have returned a positive result, which is down slightly over the last two weeks.
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- North Carolina stay home remains in effect: Phase 1 began May 8.
- South Carolina State of Emergency expired: May 11
During a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Cohen said overall the state is seeing sustained leveling on a large number of trends and metrics.
The percentage of positive COVID-19 tests that are positive are rending downward. Cohen said the percentage is between 5% and 6%.
“As we begin to ease restrictions we need to stay vigilant to ensure that our healthcare systems can be ready if we see an increase in patients with serious illness from COVID-19,” Cohen said.
New program starts Tuesday for families in North Carolina that utilized the free and reduced lunch programs at school. Families will receive about $370 in benefits per child provided over two installments.
Cohen said families don’t need to apply for program. Beginning Tuesday most eligible families already receiving food and nutrition service benefits will receive additional funds on their existing EBT card.
