NEW ORLEANS – As of noon on March 27, Louisiana has 2,746 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 119 deaths from the virus.

Those numbers surged from yesterday, when there were 2,305 confirmed cases and only 83 deaths.

The number of patients currently being treated at hospitals rose to 773, with 270 of those people currently on ventilators, according to the Louisiana Department of Health.

Orleans Parish continues to lead the state with 1,170 cases and 57 deaths. Jefferson Parish ranks second, with 548 cases and 24 deaths.

Coronavirus has now been confirmed in 54 of the state’s 64 parishes.

Over 18,000 tests have been completed by commercial companies statewide. Those numbers dwarf the Department of Health’s testing program, which has completed just over 2,400 tests.

The elderly remain the hardest hit group in the state.

People younger than 18 remain largely spared by the virus, with only 20 confirmed cases and one death. Five-hundred-and-seventy cases have been reported in the 50 to 59 age group, with 21 deaths.

There have been 491 cases in people over 70 years of age, and 69 deaths, the most among any age group in the state of Louisiana.

The next update will be published on March 28 at noon.