27 new COVID-19 cases announced, additional deaths identified in Del.

SMYRNA, Del. – The Delaware Division of Public Health has announced an additional 27 positive COVID-19 cases in the state.

To date, there have been a total of 10,847 cases in the state of Delaware. Sussex County has seen 4,509, while Kent has seen 1,624, and New Castle has seen 4,697. At this time, 91 individuals are hospitalized, 15 of whom are critically ill.

6,554 Delawareans have made a full recovery.

Health officials have also announced that after completing a review of death certificate records from the Delaware Vital Events Registration System and comparing that information to epidemiological surveillance data, an additional 67 COVID-19 deaths have been identified dating back to April 2020. Officials say these were not previously reported to DPH through standard reporting procedures, but should be classified as confirmed or probable deaths, per the CDC case definition.

To ensure the highest quality of data, the epidemiology team at the Division of Public Health has shared its COVID-19 death data with DPH’s Bureau of Health and Vital Statistics. The bureau’s staff performed a review of the death certifications that list either COVID-19 or SARS CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) as the cause of death or a significant condition contributing to death.

This data identified the following:

• 32 individuals who were already identified as a confirmed COVID-19 case in the epidemiological surveillance system, but for which DPH did not receive a subsequently report of the person’s death
• 26 individuals who did not have a record of a lab result for COVID-19 in the surveillance system
• 9 individuals who had previously tested negative for COVID-19, but for which the deceased person’s death certificate listed COVID-19 or SARS CoV-2 as a cause of, or a significant condition contributing to, death

With this addition, a total of 504 Delawareans have died from complications of the virus.