Massachusetts reported four new coronavirus deaths Wednesday, bringing the statewide total to 15.
The state Department of Public Health reported total 1,838 coronavirus cases, an increase of 679 since Tuesday. Officials have been warning that the number of cases statewide was likely to rise dramatically due to recent increases in testing for the virus. Nearly 20,000 people have now been tested in Massachusetts.
The latest deaths included two men in their 80s, one man in his 70s and a woman in her 70s. All of them had preexisting conditions and had been hospitalized.
The majority of the confirmed cases in the Bay State continue to be in Middlesex County, with 446 people affected. Suffolk County now has 342 cases, followed by Norfolk County's 222 and Essex County's 177.
The number of patients hospitalized continues to grow, as well, with health officials saying Tuesday that 103 people have required hospitalization. Another 350 were not hospitalized, and 1,385 cases remain under investigation.
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The cases are nearly equally divided between men and women, while those diagnosed with COVID-19 very greatly in age.
Only 41 teenagers and children have been diagnosed with COVID-19, while 326 people have tested positive between the ages of 20 and 29, 322 between 30 and 39 years old, 313 between 40 and 49, 330 between 50 and 59, 249 between 60 and 69 and 255 who are 70 or older. The age of two people with the new coronavirus has yet to be determined.
