The Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Dashboard for Wednesday, September 2, at 5:28 a.m.:

Worldwide cases:  25,809,515   Worldwide deaths: 858,072

U.S. cases: 6,082,260      U.S. deaths:  184,910

According to the Dashboard, the reported worldwide case report increased by 276,429 in the last 24 hours.  Deaths worldwide increased by more than 6,425.

According to the Johns Hopkins Dashboard, the United States has added 45,691 cases in the last 24 hours.  In that time,  the number of reported deaths from  COVID-19 increased by 1,221.

On Tuesday, the state had nearly 6,000 active cases (out of 7,848 total), and a total of 74 people in the state have perished from COVID-19.   On Tuesday afternoon, State Department of Health reported Hawaii Island had 190 active cases (out of 383 total).  The good news is that the number of people who are hospitalized was down to 11 at Hilo Medical Center as of Tuesday early afternoon, following 18 at the peak.

The bad, sad news is that 3 people have died from COVID-19, all of whom were residents at the Yukio Otsuku Veterans Home just below Hilo Medical Center.  Elena Cabatu from HMC said all had several underlying conditions, or comorbidities.   Comorbidities are medical conditions that weaken the patient and may lower their chance of surviving COVID-19 but are not the underlying cause of death.

Medical professionals have said that now, six plus months into this pandemic, they have learned more about the most effective way to treat patients, and the percentage of people who die from COVID-19 has decreased.  That includes here in the state.  On Monday in a State House Select Committee on COVID-19 update, the Queen’s Medical Center CEO Dr. Jill Hoggard Green said that local hospitals are using both remdesivir and dexamethasone with all COVID-19 patients now, and it’s proving to keep patients alive that might have died six months ago without those medications.  Hilo Medical Center’s CEO, Dan Brinkman, has said the same, and that these drugs are being used on this island, as well.

Several medical professionals have said that they now try to avoid the use of ventilators when possible, and use other lung improvement therapies, as putting people on ventilators and having them completely immobile can also lead to other problems.