According to state data, Nevada reported 500 new cases of coronavirus and 16 additional deaths on Saturday.
The updated figures published on the coronavirus website of the Department of Health and Human Services brought the total numbers to 295,960 cases and 5,036 deaths.
Saturday saw the highest increase in cases in more than a week, as 571 cases were reported on February 25, according to records kept by the Review Journal. The new cases were also well above the 14-day moving average of daily reported cases, which dropped slightly to 261 on Saturday.
Deaths were also well above the moving average of two weeks of the daily recorded deaths, which remained at seven on Saturday.
The data show that the average for both cases and deaths has been falling since mid-January.
The state and district health and state agencies regularly redistribute data after it has been reported to better reflect the date of death or the onset of symptoms, therefore the moving average trend lines often differ from the daily reports and are considered better indicators of the direction of the outbreak.
There were 79 deaths recorded this week, according to records kept by the Review Journal, the lowest number in a single week since 58 on November 8-14.
The state’s two-week positivity rate, which mainly follows how many people tested were infected with the virus, dropped to 6.7 percent, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points from the previous day.
As of Saturday’s update, 399 people in Nevada have been hospitalized with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases, six more than the previous day, according to state data. Although daily totals can fluctuate, hospitalizations have been declining since January, government officials said.
Clark County reported 409 new cases and 12 additional deaths on Saturday, according to information published on the Coronavirus website in the southern Nevada district.
The cumulative totals in the province rose to 228,492 cases and 3,930 deaths.
The province’s 14-day positivity rate fell to 7.3 percent on Saturday, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous day. The rate remained 0.6 percentage point higher than the state average.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at [email protected] or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.