Editor's note: Due to a calculation error, local communities' death records from the latest week were repeated as the previous week in these reports between July 26 and Aug. 30. They have been removed.

New coronavirus cases leaped in Louisiana in the week ending Sunday, rising 26.8% as 40,873 cases were reported. The previous week had 32,224 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Louisiana ranked first among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States increased 20.3% from the week before, with 914,968 cases reported. With 1.4% of the country's population, Louisiana had 4.47% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 46 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

Vernon Parish reported 279 cases and seven deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 250 cases. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 4,179 cases and 121 deaths.

Within Louisiana, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Lafourche, Livingston and Ascension parishes. Adding the most new cases overall were Jefferson Parish, with 3,557 cases; East Baton Rouge Parish, with 3,463 cases; and St. Tammany Parish, with 2,520. Weekly case counts rose in 57 parishes from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Livingston, East Baton Rouge and Ascension parishes.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Louisiana ranked 47th among states in share of people receiving at least one shot, with 46.4% of its residents at least partially vaccinated. The national rate is 59.7%, a USA TODAY analysis of CDC data shows. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are the most used in the United States, require two doses administered a few weeks apart.

In the week ending Sunday, Louisiana reported administering another 107,045 vaccine doses, including 73,108 first doses. In the previous week, the state administered 119,205 vaccine doses, including 95,659 first doses. In all, Louisiana reported it has administered 3,890,510 total doses.

Across Louisiana, cases fell in six parishes, with the best declines in St. James, St. John the Baptist and Claiborne parishes.

In Louisiana, 309 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 211 people were were reported dead.

A total of 614,776 people in Louisiana have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 11,519 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 36,678,753 people have tested positive and 621,635 people have died.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Aug. 15.

Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

• Last week: 3,366
• The week before that: 3,163
• Four weeks ago: 903

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

• Last week: 122,551
• The week before that: 103,585
• Four weeks ago: 52,507

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Leesville Daily Leader: Vernon Parish's COVID cases up 11.6%; Louisiana cases surge 26.8%