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By Marc Freeman 
 FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ Fatalities linked to COVID-19 continue to rise in Florida, as the state on Friday reported another 180 deaths.
 While devastating, the total is fewer than the record for a daily report, 257, posted one week earlier. The latest daily totals are not reflective of deaths in the past 24 hours, but rather recent weeks.
 The state Department of Health says at least 8,051 people have died from COVID-19 complications since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
 Newly reported COVID-19 infections are holding steady. Officials reported 7,686 cases on Friday, just a hair more than the 7,650 cases added on the previous day.
 The state says the overall total is now at 518,075 people who have tested positive for infections. The test results reported on a single day typically reflect tests taken over several days.
 There was one less encouraging sign, however: the percentage of positive tests crept back up to 10.1% among people who tested positive for the first time in the most recent statewide summary.
 Just Thursday, it was 8.3%, the lowest daily mark since June 21, when it was 7.7%. The state had a 15% positivity rate on most days during the first week of July,
 The state is back up to processing close to 100,000 test results per day, after a drop earlier in the week from the closure of sites due to Tropical Storm Isaias.
 SOUTH FLORIDA
 South Florida, which accounts for 29% of Florida's population, reported 2,797 new cases in the past day, or 36.4% of the daily total for the state.
 Broward County: 688 new coronavirus cases were reported Friday, bringing the total to 60,746. A total of 807 people have died; there was no change since the last report.
 Palm Beach County: 377 new cases, bringing the total to 36,114. A total of 934 people have died, 27 more than reported on Thursday.
 Miami-Dade County: 1,732 new cases, bringing the total to 129,409. A total of 1,825 people have died. That's 25 more than reported Thursday.
 TESTING AND POSITIVITY RATE
 A total of 3.9 million people have been swabbed in Florida since the pandemic began, producing a positivity rate of 13.3%. The state reports that almost 3.38 million people have tested negative. At the end of May, Florida's positivity rate was about 5.6%.
 In South Florida the positivity rates in the previous day were 9.9% for Broward, up from Thursday's 8.4%; 14.5% for Miami-Dade, up from 12.8%; and 7.4% for Palm Beach County, which is down from 7.7%.
 Public health experts say the positivity rate is an important figure, since it indicates the prevalence of the disease in the state's population. The World Health Organization has advised governments that before reopening, the rate should remain at 5% or lower for at least 14 days.
 During a stop in Orlando Friday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state is trending in the right direction with various "indicators" concerning the outbreak.
 "If you look at COVID-like illness (among people going to hospital emergency departments,) if you look at (testing) positivity, which I think we've seen is not always the best indicator because of the way the tests are reported, the hospitalizations _ great movement downward everywhere in the state _ so let's just keep that going," DeSantis said.
 HOSPITALIZATIONS
 The number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 decreased statewide and in South Florida on Friday. There were 7,171 patients at 12:16 p.m., according to the Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration. About 24 hours earlier, the same report listed 7,443 patients.
 The number of people in hospitals for COVID-19 has been declining. The total hospitalized for the disease two weeks ago was 9,206.
 Miami-Dade County has the most people hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of the new coronavirus: 1,619 patients, an increase of two since Thursday. Next is Broward with 1,021, a decrease of 19. Palm Beach County has 442, a decrease of 12.
 Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 29,730 residents have been hospitalized, according to the state health department. That's an increase of 2,758 patients since Aug. 1, when the total stood at 26,972.
 Health experts say people older than 65 are most vulnerable to hospitalization and death, along with people who have underlying health issues, including weakened immune systems, diabetes or obesity.
 DEATHS
 Statewide: The official COVID-19 death total for Florida reached 8,051 on Friday. That figure includes 124 people who were not residents. The three South Florida counties account for 3,566 deaths, or 44.3% of the state total.
 Seniors: At least 3,378 deaths have occurred among residents and staff of nursing homes and long-term care facilities, a figure that represents 42.6% of the state total for coronavirus deaths of residents.
 Miami-Dade County has the highest number of long-term care facility deaths, with 625, or 18.5% of the total. Palm Beach County had 372 deaths, or 11%, and Broward accounted for 228 deaths, or 6.7%.
 Nationwide: Florida has reported an average of about 155 deaths per day, or 1,084 total over the past seven days. Florida's death rate ranks 18th in the United States, with compared with other states and the District of Columbia, with 36 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's COVID Data Tracker.
 New Jersey has the highest death rate with 178 deaths per 100,000. New York, with figures for New York City excluded, has 80 deaths per 100,000. Texas has 26 deaths per 100,000, and California has 25. California and Texas are the most populous states, followed by Florida and New York.
 GLOBAL VIEW
 U.S.: The coronavirus death toll in the United States reached 160,157 as of 10:35 a.m. Friday, according to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University.
 The United States has reported almost 4.9 million cases, the highest total in the world.
 Worldwide: The global total reached almost 19.2 million cases Friday, with at least 716,083 deaths, Johns Hopkins reported.
 The U.S. has 4.3% of the world's population, but 25.5% of the world's cases and 22.4% of the world's deaths.
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 GRAPHICS (for help with images, contact 312-222-4194): CORONAVIRUS

Florida surpasses 8,000 COVID-19 deaths with Friday's pandemic report