Pennsylvania’s early warning monitoring system dashboard appears to show promising news for Berks County: As of Friday, most of the key metrics were in decline, including the seven-day total of new cases, incidence rate per 100,000 residents and COVID-19-specific hospitalizations.
But a recent increase in cases, not included in the latest dashboard numbers, indicates that could all change this week.
On Saturday, 79 new coronavirus cases were reported in Berks, a one-day spike not seen since May 10. While the number of new cases fell on Sunday to 23, it rebounded again as 43 new cases were reported Monday.
As a result, the seven-day average in Berks inched up to 39 cases per day, and the 14-day average rose to 38 cases per day in Berks County. A month ago, these numbers were in the 20s.
On Monday, the state reported its lowest one-day total since Friday, with 620 new cases (and an additional 638 on Sunday). But that does not reflect Pennsylvania’s largest county, Philadelphia, which did not report any numbers on Monday. Philadelphia had been leading the state in overall cases as well as per-capita cases.
Berks remains third in the state in overall numbers of cases per 100,000 people, with 1,568. Delaware County leads the state with 1,934 per 100,000, while Philadelphia is, at the moment, in second place with 1,916.
Last week an increase of cases at Kutztown University prompted the borough to enact an ordinance mandating the use of masks and limiting the size of social gatherings.
Still, the ZIP codes with the most positive coronavirus cases in Berks are in Reading: 570 in 19602; 993 in 19601; and 854 in 19604.
Reading Hospital has 24 patients with COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by coronavirus, while Penn State Health St. Joseph has seven.
The Department of Health reiterated the following recommendations:
- Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
- Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.
- Cover coughs or sneezes with your elbow.
- Clean surfaces frequently.
- Stay home, especially if you are unwell.
- If you go out, wear a mask when in a business or where it is difficult to maintain proper social distancing.
