Source: Mississippi State Department of Health

The Mississippi State Department of Health reported on Saturday 1,942 new cases of COVID-19 and 33 additional deaths in the state.

The department has reported 163,458 cases of the novel coronavirus and 3,949 COVID-19 related deaths since March.

State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs is advising Mississippians to only participate in work, school and other “absolutely essential” activities.

MSDH recommended on Wednesday that all Mississippi residents avoid any social gathering that includes individuals outside of one’s nuclear family or household.

The department is recommending that people avoid funerals, unless they are a member of the close family of the deceased, and is advising that the funerals are held outdoors. Other gatherings that MSDH recommends that people do not attend are social events, parties, family gatherings outside of one’s household or nuclear family, weddings, sporting events and in-person church services.

Dobbs said in a tweet Saturday morning that Mississippi may see an additional 1,000 deaths before 2021 begins. He asked, “What would I do to save 1,000 lives?”

“I would do a lot,” he said in the tweet. “We collectively can save thousands of Mississippians throughout this rest of the pandemic.”

MSDH reported 48 new cases of COVID-19 in Lauderdale County on Saturday, bringing the total to 3,802 cases. The county reported one new death, which occurred between November 28 and December 4. 150 deaths have been reported in the county since March.

MSDH reported 14 new cases in Newton County, which has had a total of 1,163 cases since March. No new deaths were reported; the county has had 29 COVID-19 related deaths since March.

In Kemper County, 12 new cases were reported; 512 cases have been reported since March. No new deaths were reported; the county has reported 19 COVID-19 related deaths since March.

Clarke County reported 11 new cases, bringing the case total to 980. The county reported one new death, which was identified from death certificate reports and occurred between October 22 and November 25. The county has had 55 COVID-19 related deaths since March.

In Neshoba County, 16 new cases were reported; the county’s case total is 2,349. The county reported no new deaths; 124 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported in the county since March.

The Department of Health presumes 128,746 people have recovered from COVID-19. The department also reported that there are 200 ongoing outbreaks of COVID-19 in long-term-care facilities.

The City of Meridian is under a mask mandate that remains in effect until the end of the year. 

Lauderdale, Neshoba and Kemper counties are on a list of 54 counties with additional COVID-19 safety measures. Indoor social gatherings in these counties must be limited to 10 people, and outdoor social gatherings must be limited to 50.

People in the counties must wear a mask when they are indoors and interacting with the public, but cannot social distance.

COVID-19 data for Mississippi counties

County	Total Cases	Total Deaths	Total LTC Facility Cases	Total LTC Facility Deaths
Adams	1515	52	70	14
Alcorn	1640	31	88	13
Amite	629	15	15	2
Attala	1284	37	126	24
Benton	512	18	44	10
Bolivar	2589	86	223	30
Calhoun	843	14	25	4
Carroll	795	15	45	9
Chickasaw	1149	33	48	14
Choctaw	386	7	1	0
Claiborne	598	16	43	9
Clarke	980	55	93	27
Clay	996	27	20	3
Coahoma	1610	46	127	11
Copiah	1776	41	72	9
Covington	1394	44	92	19
De Soto	10942	106	103	20
Forrest	4107	89	185	41
Franklin	394	6	4	1
George	1393	26	47	6
Greene	666	23	47	6
Grenada	1507	45	131	21
Hancock	1341	43	67	12
Harrison	7732	115	387	38
Hinds	10855	208	552	83
Holmes	1379	61	103	20
Humphreys	569	19	33	8
Issaquena	128	4	0	0
Itawamba	1694	37	100	17
Jackson	6808	131	194	20
Jasper	915	23	1	0
Jefferson	393	12	15	3
Jefferson Davis	611	18	8	1
Jones	3927	90	190	38
Kemper	512	19	41	9
Lafayette	3492	59	152	35
Lamar	3148	50	44	12
Lauderdale	3802	150	344	79
Lawrence	774	14	27	2
Leake	1481	44	45	7
Lee	5646	98	201	39
Leflore	2196	93	196	48
Lincoln	2049	67	166	36
Lowndes	2679	68	130	37
Madison	5368	113	298	55
Marion	1287	50	120	19
Marshall	2314	51	58	15
Monroe	2192	78	176	52
Montgomery	816	26	53	9
Neshoba	2349	124	169	48
Newton	1163	29	47	10
Noxubee	754	17	21	4
Oktibbeha	2657	63	199	31
Panola	2455	55	60	11
Pearl River	1709	71	118	24
Perry	704	27	20	7
Pike	1725	60	98	27
Pontotoc	2202	32	20	3
Prentiss	1608	34	93	11
Quitman	510	7	0	0
Rankin	6422	115	262	33
Scott	1684	30	30	3
Sharkey	338	17	43	8
Simpson	1579	54	138	19
Smith	774	16	55	8
Stone	859	15	58	9
Sunflower	2011	56	84	15
Tallahatchie	1016	27	33	7
Tate	1887	51	72	18
Tippah	1370	30	62	4
Tishomingo	1185	45	96	26
Tunica	641	19	15	2
Union	1825	26	46	11
Walthall	812	30	67	13
Warren	1930	59	142	27
Washington	3442	108	187	39
Wayne	1284	24	60	10
Webster	504	14	52	11
Wilkinson	434	22	20	5
Winston	1360	29	79	15
Yalobusha	764	29	81	21
Yazoo	1688	41	138	15
Total	163,458	3,949	8,015	1,482