Panama City, Fla.— The Florida Department of Health in Bay County (DOH-Bay) confirmed three COVID-19 related deaths; a 76-year-old man (case confirmed July 23), a 79-year-old man (case confirmed August 10) and a 34-year-old man (case confirmed August 17).

DOH-Bay offers condolences to the families and will continue to work diligently with our community partners to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Please note that although these deaths are being reported today that does not mean these deaths occurred in the last 24 hours, rather, they were confirmed in the past 24 hours.

DOH-Bay also received confirmation of 21 additional cases of COVID-19 in Bay County residents with 401 negative test results and a 4.98% positive rate.

According to the Agency for Health Care Administration, as of 10 a.m. today there are 25 persons in Bay County hospitals with a primary diagnosis of COVID-19. 

The age range for Bay County residents testing positive for COVID-19 for September 1 is 0-4 years (0), 5-14 years (1), 15-24 years (4), 25-34 (3), 35-44 (1), 45-54 (4), 55-64 (5), 65-74 (1), 75-84 (2), 85+ (0), and unknown (0).

Bay County’s total case count is at 5,418 including 5,334 residents and 84 non-residents. There have been 82 COVID-19 related deaths of Bay County residents. There have been 19 deaths associated with long-term care facilities. Bay County’s overall COVID-19 positive testing rate is 17 percent. Of the 30,989 tests processed, 25,593 tests are negative.

Cities of Bay County cases based on patient’s ZIP Code: Panama City (3,462), Lynn Haven (827), Panama City Beach (694), Youngstown (110), Southport (76), Fountain (61), Missing (47), Callaway (20), Tyndall Air Force Base (12), Mexico Beach (10), Parker (5), Vernon (3), Inlet Beach (2), Bayou George (2), Seacrest (1), Rosemary Beach (1), and Watersound (1).

Data is preliminary and subject to change based on public health investigations.

COVID-19 Question of the Day

What should I do if someone in my home has asthma?

People with moderate to severe asthma may be at higher risk of getting very sick from COVID-19.  COVID-19 can affect your nose, throat, lungs (respiratory tract); cause an asthma attack; and possibly lead to pneumonia and acute respiratory disease.

• Keep your asthma under control by following your asthma action plan
• Avoid your asthma triggers
• Do not stop any medications or change your asthma treatment plan without talking to your healthcare provider

Remember, any disinfectant can trigger an asthma attack. Choose disinfectants that are less likely to cause an asthma attack like products with hydrogen peroxide (no stronger than 3%) or ethanol and products that do NOT contain peroxyacetic acid or peracetic acid. Limit use of chemicals that can trigger asthma such as bleach or ammonia. Always read and follow directions on the product label.

For more information visit http://ww11.doh.state.fl.us/comm/_partners/action/covid19_and_lung_disease.pdf or https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/asthma.html.

Quarantine is used to keep someone who might have been exposed to COVID-19 away from others. Quarantine helps prevent spread of disease that can occur before a person knows they are sick or if they are infected with the virus without feeling symptoms. People in quarantine should stay home, separate themselves from others, monitor their health, and follow directions from the Florida Department of Health in Bay County.

Prevention

One Goal One Florida asks all Floridians to join this important initiative by following these simple, yet effective steps to mitigate and slow the spread of the virus:

1. Protect the vulnerable, including the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions 
2. Practice proper hygiene, including washing your hands 
3. Practice social distancing, avoiding closed spaces and crowded places 
4. Wear a mask, if you are in close contact with others 

Testing

Bay County

Lynn Haven Sports Park
2201 Recreation Drive

Callaway Recreational Complex
500 Callaway Parkway

Hours: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Tuesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Criteria: 18 and older with photo identification required upon arrival for appointment and Children 5-17 can be tested with a parent or guardian
Cost: Free
Appointments recommended. To make an appointment for a test, visit https://makoexchangedev.com/baycounty/. While appointments are encouraged, walk-in clients are being accepted at both testing locations after 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and after 1 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday.

DOH-Bay

DOH-Bay is testing anyone with symptoms of COVID-19. For screening, please call DOH-Bay at (850) 872-4455 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and follow the prompts. Testing is by appointment only. Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills, muscle pain, new loss of taste or smell, vomiting or diarrhea, and/or sore throat. The CDC has a symptom checker available at CDC.gov/coronavirus. For additional testing options and information, visit Bay.FloridaHealth.gov.

Test Results

Bay County Testing Sites

To contact the testing lab to inquire about your results, please call (919) 390-3060 or email info@makomedical.com. You will receive a text message when your results are ready. You will  access your test results through the same website where you registered for testing. Simply visit https://makoexchangedev.com/baycounty/, log-in, and there is a link to get results.

DOH-Bay

Exposed or tested positive? Look out for an official call from COVID-19 contact tracers. Answer calls from 833-673-0864 (0865,0866, 0867, 0868), 833-443-5364, or 850-583-2419, or county health departments to discuss potential exposure to COVID-19 with a contact tracer. Contact tracers will NEVER ask for your Social Security number or financial information. Save the numbers in your contacts so you never miss the call.  

If you need physical copies of your COVID-19 test results, please follow the directions below:

Phone: Call (850) 872-4455 and follow the prompts to COVID test results prompts and request the status with the representative. You will be provided with the option to obtain your results in person (if negative) or electronically (negative or positive).

Office: If you come to our office, do not get out of your car. Please call (850) 872-4455 and follow the COVID test results prompts. Please let us know you are in the parking lot and we will deliver your results to you in your vehicle.

Email: You can make your request by emailing baymedicalrecords@flhealth.gov. After you complete the authorization form, you will need to respond with a picture of your photo ID and we will send your result to you via an encrypted email. The email must be viewed on a desktop or laptop PC as the encryption is not mobile friendly.

Additional Data

The state provides a report detailing surveillance data for every Florida county, which is available here.

In order to make the daily COVID-19 report easier to download and more accessible, the daily report will now separate case line data in a separate PDF. Both reports will continue to be updated daily. The case line data report is available here.

Florida long-term care facility data:

• The list of long-term care facilities with active COVID-19 cases is available here. 
• The list of long-term care facilities with deaths is available here, which is updated weekly. 

The antibody COVID-19 test results report will be provided once a week and contains county, race and lab information on antibody COVID-19 tests conducted in Florida. The report for antibody tests conducted by private health care providers is available here and the report for antibody tests conducted at state-supported COVID-19 testing sites is available here.

The Agency for Health Care Administration added an additional tab to the Hospital Bed Capacity Dashboard to reflect hospitalizations with the primary diagnosis of COVID-19.

More information on a case-by-case basis can also be found here.

For more Information on COVID-19

For text alert updates from the Florida Department of Health in Bay County, text “bayhealth” to 888-777. For additional information specific to Bay County, visit https://bay.floridahealth.gov/ or BayHealthCOVID19.com. Contact the Citizens Information Center seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at (850) 248-6090, or email ask@baycountyfl.gov.  

To find the most up-to-date information and guidance on COVID-19, please visit the Department of Health’s dedicated COVID-19 website at FloridaHealthCOVID19.gov. For any other questions related to COVID-19 in Florida, call (866) 779-6121. The Call Center is available 24 hours per day or email COVID-19@flhealth.gov.

The free StrongerThanC19 app is available to both iOS and Android users and can be downloaded from the Apple or Google app stores. The StrongerThanC19 app and website are designed to gather information to help the Department of Health track and slow the spread of COVID-19 in Florida; they are not intended to be used as a symptom checker designed to dispense medical advice.

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About the Florida Department of Health 

The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @HealthyFla. For more information about the Florida Department of Health, please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.