Following a delay in today’s report, the Mississippi State Department of Health has now confirmed 653 new cases of COVID-19 with six additional deaths.
Today’s new cases bring Mississippi’s total number of cases up to 52,957. 1,501 Mississippians have now passed away from the virus.
State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs made the announcement during today’s press briefing. During his remarks, Dr. Dobbs indicated that today’s decrease in new cases, which follows consecutive days of over 1,000 new cases over the weekend, is not likley to become a trend.
A bit of positive news as Dr. Dobbs explained that, while the system remains tight, there has been some stability in hospitalizations in recent days. In the past week, there are over 300 less “non-COVID” patients in the hospital, freeing up bed capacity.
While COVID-19 symptoms are similar to many other viruses, Dr. Dobbs explained that high fever, body aches, back pain, and a loss of taste or sense of smell continue to be the main indicators. As for what’s causing the rising number of cases, health officials continue to state that social gatherings are driving transmission.
During today’s briefing, Governor Reeves and Dr. Dobbs discussed numerous topics such as schools, sporting events, mask mandates and more. You can view the briefing in its entirety below:
