While Lincoln County’s COVID numbers have climbed gradually in the latest update from the state health department — one more death and 27 new positive cases — the state’s total has jumped dramatically.

Mississippi has reported its highest one-day total yet since the pandemic’s onset — 4,412 new positive test results.

This is a 21% jump in cases from the previous one-day peak of 3,488 that came just two days earlier on Aug. 10. Rounding out the top five one-day totals are results from Jan. 9, 2021 — 3,255 cases; Jan. 7, 2021 — 3,203 cases; and Aug. 5, 2021 — 3,164 cases.

Twenty new deaths were reported Thursday. Half were reported for the 24-hour period of 3 p.m. Aug. 10 through 3 p.m. Aug. 11; half were identified from death certificate reports Dec. 23, 2020, through July 31, 2021.

There have now been 7,730 deaths reported for the Magnolia State and 376,124 positive cases.

As of Wednesday, the percentage of patients admitted to King’s Daughter Medical Center in Brookhaven has increased by 175% from pre-pandemic levels. The hospital reported 22 COVID-positive patients admitted, 10 on ventilators in the intensive care unit. Twenty of the patients were unvaccinated. KDMC administered 28 monoclonal antibody infusions within the previous 24 hours.

Surveys conducted by the United States Census Bureau and Household Pulse indicate 60% of Mississippians have not taken a vaccination against COVID-19. Reasons given for hesitancy were worries over side effects (48%), waiting to see if it’s safe (49%) or lack of trust in the vaccines (46%). Twenty-four percent of unvaccinated Mississippians said they don’t believe they need it and 22% said they simply don’t trust the government.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 9.55% of tested individuals nationwide received positive test results over the previous seven days, as of 3:43 p.m. Wednesday. Just under 500 million tests have been administered across the nation as of Aug. 11, with 37,968,043 positive results.

Mississippi has an average of 20-24.9% positive result rate.

Mississippi is one of 41 states currently experiencing a high level of community transmission of the virus. Transmission levels are rated low, moderate, substantial or high by the CDC. Eight states had substantial levels of transmission through community interaction — Colorado, Minnesota, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Maryland — and Michigan had a moderate rate.

The CDC, MSDH and KDMC continue to recommend getting vaccinated against the coronavirus COVID-19, wearing a mask, avoiding large gatherings, washing hands often and disinfecting surfaces to help prevent transmission of the virus.