State says lab backlog boosts COVID-19 numbers Saturday

The Louisiana Office of Public Health posted the largest one-day increase in COVID-19 cases in weeks Saturday and said a backlog of older test results is partially responsible.

But even without the backlogged results, the numbers were among the highest seen recently.

Locally:

--St. Mary has five new cases for a total of 353. No deaths were reported, so the death roll remains at 33.

--St. Martin has 24 new COVID cases for a total of 340. Twenty-six people have died there.

--Assumption had five new cases for a total of 263. A total of 14 deaths have been recorded.

Statewide:

--1,288 new cases raise the state total to 46,283. The OPH said the backlog accounts for 560 cases resulting from tests performed April 25-June 9. But even without the older test results, the state logged 728 new cases, significantly more than have been reported in recent weeks.

Hospitalizations haven't risen in proportion. The state reported seven new hospitalizations for a total of 549, and two more people went on ventilators for a total of 76.

The number of cases can be expected to increase with an upswing in testing, Dr. Alex Billioux of the Louisiana Department of Health told reporters Wednesday. That indicates that the testing is catching asymptomatic cases.

But if hospitalizations track the rise in cases, Billioux said, that's a sign of greater COVID spread in the community or group settings. Outside of some areas, including the regions centered on Monroe, Alexandria and Lake Charles, Louisiana hospitalizations haven't risen along with new cases since economic sanctions have begun to be eased.

Eight new deaths were reported Saturday for a total of 2,891.