Nevada reports 526 new COVID-19 cases, 11 deaths

Nevada reported 526 new cases of the coronavirus in the state on Saturday, along with 11 new deaths.

Updated figures posted to the state Department of Health and Human Services’ coronavirus website brought totals in Nevada to 81,708 cases and 1,620 deaths.

The infection rate, calculated by the Review-Journal as the number of cases divided by the number of people who have been tested, reached 11.52 percent on Saturday. The rate, which is considered to be a better indicator of the outbreak than daily cases or death totals, has been slowly increasing since last weekend, when the figure was at 11.44 percent.

The state, which bases its positivity rate on the number of tests conducted, calculated the cumulative rate at 9.8 percent, the same figure it’s been since Tuesday. The state’s methodology yields lower figures because many people get tested multiple times, increasing the numbers upon which the percentages are based, which in turn lowers the percentages.

The number of people hospitalized over the previous day in Nevada with confirmed or suspected coronavirus cases decreased by 21 on Saturday, reaching 442 hospitalizations, state data shows.

Meanwhile, the Southern Nevada Health District reported 418 new cases of the virus in Clark County and nine additional fatalities.

The updated figures brought totals in the county to 68,580 cases and 1,409 deaths.

The health district estimates that 62,850 people in Clark County have recovered from the virus.

In Washoe County, the Regional Information Center on Saturday reported three additional COVID-19-related deaths and 106 new cases.

The new data brings Washoe County’s total cases to 9,890, and total deaths to 164.

The number of active cases currently stands at 1,436, the highest recorded total of active cases, 18 more than the previous record of 1,418 recorded on Sept. 14.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.