Mississippi on Tuesday saw by far its largest single-day increase in reported cases of COVID-19, as health officials continued to warn that hospitals face dire circumstances as caseloads keep growing.
It was the first time that the state Health Department reported an increase of more than 1,600 cases over the previous day. Mississippi has had several recent days with increases of more than 1,000 cases.
Republican Gov. Tate Reeves and the state health officer, Dr. Thomas Dobbs, have been pleading with people to take steps to slow the spread of the coronavirus, including wearing masks in public and avoiding large crowds.
“We’re going to have to recognize that none of us are invincible,” Reeves said during a news conference Monday.
Reeves has declined to issue a statewide mask mandate, but he has signed an executive order that requires people to wear masks in public in
23 of the 82 counties — the places with the largest or fastest-growing caseloads. The order also tells people in those places to avoid large crowds. Reeves said it applies to about 55% to 60% of Mississippi’s population.
Mississippi has a population of about 3 million. The Health Department said Tuesday that the state has had at least 45,524 cases and at least 1,389 deaths from COVID-19 as of Monday evening. That was an increase of 1,635 cases and 31 deaths from numbers reported the day before; the figures included five deaths that occurred between June 30 and July 12, with information from death certificates arriving later.
At least 3,192 cases of the virus have been confirmed in long-term care facilities such as nursing homes, with at least 658 virus-related deaths in those facilities, the department said.
The true number of virus infections is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested and studies suggest people can be infected without feeling sick. While most people who contract the coronavirus recover after suffering only mild to moderate symptoms, it can be deadly for older patients and those with other health problems.