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WILKES-BARRE &mdash; Most of the new cases of COVID-19 reported Tuesday in Luzerne County are likely the result of community spread, said Nate Wardle, press secretary at the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
				&rdquo;In looking at the data, only three of the cases were associated with long-term care facilities &mdash; one resident, two employees,&rdquo; Wardle said. &ldquo;That likely means that the rest of the cases are from community spread.&rdquo;
				The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Tuesday reported 35 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Luzerne County and no new deaths. That&rsquo;s the highest one-day amount for new cases in the county since mid-May.
				The Luzerne County total cases are now at 3,191, and the death count remains at 183.
				Neighboring Lackawanna County has 1,866 cases and 212 deaths; Monroe County has 1,562 cases and 122 deaths.
				Wardle said the Department of Health does not provide information on where cases are coming from.
				&ldquo;But these increases highlight the fact that we need the entire state to continue to take steps to protect themselves from this virus, such as wearing masks, maintaining social distancing, avoiding large gathering, washing their hands frequently, and if they are sick staying home,&rdquo; Wardle said. &ldquo;These steps also include quarantining after traveling from states on the department&rsquo;s travel guidance criteria.&rdquo;
				The Department of Health also confirmed that there are 1,120 additional positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the statewide total to 109,384. All 67 counties in Pennsylvania have cases of COVID-19.
				Allegheny County is reporting an increase of 119 cases, Philadelphia County is reporting an increase of 175 cases and Delaware County is reporting an increase of 118 cases.
				The number of tests administered within the last 7 days between July 21 and July 27 is 162,937 with 6,526 positive cases. There were 24,428 test results reported to the department through 10 p.m., July 27. These results represent the total number of tests administered.
				There are 7,146 total deaths attributed to COVID-19, an increase of 24 new deaths reported.
				Mask-wearing is required in all businesses and whenever leaving home. Consistent mask-wearing is critical to preventing the spread of COVID-19.
				There are 641 patients who have a positive serology test and either COVID-19 symptoms or a high-risk exposure, which are considered probable cases and not confirmed cases.
				There are 1,059,776 patients who have tested negative to date.
				Of the patients who have tested positive to date the age breakdown is as follows:
				1% are ages 0-4;
				1% are ages 5-12;
				3% are ages 13-18;
				9% are ages 19-24;
				37% are ages 25-49;
				23% are ages 50-64; and
				Nearly 25% are ages 65 or older.
				Most of the patients hospitalized are ages 65 or older, and most of the deaths have occurred in patients 65 or older.
				The department is seeing significant increases in the number of COVID-19 cases among younger age groups, particularly 19 to 24-year-olds. An alert was sent to healthcare providers about the changing COVID-19 case demographics, as there are more cases in younger age groups than in those 50-64 and 65-plus.
				In nursing and personal care homes, there are 19,225 resident cases of COVID-19, and 3,868 cases among employees, for a total of 23,093 at 835 distinct facilities in 61 counties.
				Out of our total deaths, 4,857 have occurred in residents from nursing or personal care facilities.
				Approximately 8,045 our total cases are in health care workers.
				For the latest information for individuals, families, businesses and schools, visit &ldquo;Responding to COVID-19&rdquo; on pa.gov.
				Currently, all 67 counties are in the green phase of reopening.

DOH: Most of Luzerne County’s 35 new cases of COVID-19 ‘community spread’