By CJ HADDAD

cjhaddad@breezenewspapers.com

Additional free COVID-19 testing will be available to Lee County residents throughout the month of August.

The Florida Department on Health on Monday announced they will be providing free walk-up COVID-19 testing throughout the county in partnership with Lee County Government.

According to FDOH, testing will be scheduled on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning at 9 a.m. and will continue, weather-permitting, until 1 p.m. Staff will have 300 tests available at each site for anyone 18 years of age or older. Children will be referred for testing to the Florida Department of Health in Lee County. There is no fee for the test, and no appointment or doctor’s order is necessary.

Free testing sites include:

Week 1: Aug. 4 at Schandler Hall Park, 419 Royal Palm Park Road, Fort Myers; Aug. 6 no site scheduled

Week2: Aug. 11 at Three Oaks Park, 18251 Three Oaks Parkway, Fort Myers; Aug. 13 at Buckingham Community Park, 9800 Buckingham Road, Fort Myers

Week 3: Aug. 18 at Phillips Park, 5675 Sesame Drive, Bokeelia; Aug. 20 at Old Bonita Springs Library, 2687 Pine Ave., Bonita Springs

Week 4: Aug. 25 at North Fort Myers Recreation Center, 2000 N. Recreation Center, North Fort Myers; Aug. 27 at Veterans Recreation Center, 55 Homestead Road S., Lehigh Acres

Locations on the schedule are at Lee County-owned sites, with Lee County EMS and Florida DOH-Lee staff conducting the tests and accompanying paperwork.

By the Numbers

As of 11 a.m. Monday, there are 491,884 cases of the new coronavirus confirmed in Florida, an increase of 4,752 since FDOH’s last update Sunday morning. This is the fewest number of new cases reported by the state in a daily report since 3,289 new cases were tallied on June 22.

More than 60,900 test results were reported to the Department of Health on Sunday, August 2; the fewest in more than two weeks. Of those reported tests, 9.09 percent tested positive. Over the last two weeks, the average positivity rate has been 11.41. This is also the lowest percent positivity rate in a daily report over the last two weeks.

The state saw its highly daily percentage of positive patients July 8, when 18.50 percent of tests reported were positive among 51,686 tests.

The death toll increased by 73 from yesterday’s update, reported among Bay, Broward, Columbia, Dade, Duval, Flagler, Hillsborough, Leon, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Nassau, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Seminole, Sumter, Suwannee and Volusia counties.

This does not mean all of the deaths occurred or were reported by local health care facilities on that day but that they were released in the state report that day after reports were processed.

A total of 3,758,496 individuals have been tested: 3,260,914 have tested negative, 5,698 tests were inconclusive and 3,228 tests are pending results. Of those testing positive, 27,366 Florida residents have been hospitalized at some point during their illness according to the state. There have been 7,279 deaths.

The age groups of Florida residents that have yielded the most positive test results are 25-34 years old (19%), followed by 35-44(16%), 45-54 (16%) and 15-24(15%).

The highest hospitalization rate is found in patients 65-74 (19%), 75-84 (18%) and 55-64 (18%) years old.

In Lee County, 15,799(+125) individuals have tested positive as of 11 a.m. Monday; 6,406 in Fort Myers (+52), 3,581 in Cape Coral (+28), 3,133 in Lehigh Acres (+23), 1,044 in Bonita Springs (+9), 569 in North Fort Myers (+6), 337 in Estero (+4), 95 in Alva (+2), 63 on Fort Myers Beach (+0), 37 in Sanibel (+0), 29 in Bokeelia (+0), 21 in Saint James City (+0), 15 in Tice (+0), 12 on Matlacha (+2), four in Buckingham (+0), three on Captiva (+0), three in Boca Grande (+0), three in Miromar Lakes (+0), two in San Carlos Park (+0), one in South Fort Myers(+0) and one in Immokalee(+0);158 cases were not identified by community.

Positive COVID-19 cases in the county have ranged from infants to a 101-year-old. Lee County saw its first two cases on March 7, when a man and a woman, each 77, tested positive. They had traveled to the Dominican Republic.

There have been 300(+0) deaths in Lee County; 168(+0) deaths were reported in residents or staff of long-term care facilities.

As of Monday, Lee Health had 195 COVID-19 patients isolated in system inpatient hospitals, including 56 new admissions over the weekend.

A total of 2,020 patients who had tested positive have been discharged since the beginning of the pandemic, including 54 over the weekend.

The system has submitted a total of 45,058 specimens for testing with 357 results pending.

Over the weekend, Lee Health had a 23.3% positivity rate on COVID-19 tests processed through Lee Health Labs. This represents Lee Health results only, not Lee County as a whole. Hospital positivity rates tend to be higher as the tests are performed on patients seeking treatment for a health issue, not the general public that includes asymptomatic individuals.

Lee Health’s mobile collection sites over the weekend collected 412 specimens.

Current Census is at 80(-5)% of staffed operational bed capacity, with 17.8(-1.2)% of those being COVID-19 patients. Staffed operational capacity reflects the number of beds for which the hospital has adequate staffing, not the total number of beds within Lee Health hospitals. Overall bed capacity fluctuates hour to hour as the system discharges patients throughout the day who are ready to go home.

As of Monday, 62(+1)% of ventilators and 25(+6)% of ICU rooms are available for use across Lee Health facilities.

There are currently 30(-1) COVID-19 patients on ventilators and 43(+0) in the intensive care unit.

COVID-19 is a highly contagious viral disease. For most individuals, symptoms are mild. For a minority, the disease becomes a type of viral pneumonia with severe complications. Especially at risk are those who are older, those with underlying health conditions and the immune-compromised.

Officials strongly urge all members of the public who are at risk to remain at home so as to limit exposure. All others are urged to observe social distancing and to wear a mask for all public interactions.

For more detail on Florida resident cases, visit the live DOH Dashboard.

To find the most up-to-date information and guidance on COVID-19, visit the Department of Health’s dedicated COVID-19 webpage. For information and advisories from the Centers for Disease Control, visit the CDC COVID-19 website. For more information about current travel advisories issued by the U.S. Department of State, visit the travel advisory website.

For any other questions related to COVID-19 in Florida, contact the Department’s dedicated COVID-19 Call Center by calling 1-866-779-6121. The Call Center is available 24 hours per day. Inquiries may also be emailed to COVID-19@flhealth.gov.

–Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj