Utah reports eight more coronavirus deaths and 3,489 new cases

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Nearly 17,000 have received a vaccine and ICU capacity has dropped to a December low.

(Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune) “I didn’t even hear it,” said VA health technician Diane Perkins, who received the COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday. The George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center is one of 113 VA medical centers nationwide receiving the first limited supply of the Modern COVID-19 vaccine. As front-line care workers at Utah hospitals continue to be vaccinated this week, including employees of Veterans Affairs Department George E. Wahlen’s Medical Center on December 23, 2020, it is expected that those who work in long-term care centers first doses Monday.

| December 26, 2020, at 7:11 p.m.

| Update: 8:30 p.m.

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Utah reported 3,489 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday and eight more deaths since Thursday.

Most of these cases (2,498) would have been reported on Friday, when no new issues were published due to Christmas. The remaining 991 were new cases that were reported Saturday, according to the state Department of Health.

Over the past week, the state has averaged 2,153 new positive results a day. The average positive test rate for the past seven days is at 24%, an indicator, health officials said, that many infected Utahns are not yet being tested.

Since the pandemic began, 264,078 Utahns have tested positive for COVID-19.

The death toll from the coronavirus rose Saturday to 1,212. The eight new deaths:

  • A Weber County man between 65 and 84 years old.

  • A Weber County man over 85 years old.

  • A Box Elder County man between the ages of 45 and 64.

  • A Utah County man between the ages of 65 and 84.

  • A Davis County woman between the ages of 65 and 84.

  • A Salt Lake County woman between the ages of 45 and 64.

  • A woman from Millard County between the ages of 65 and 84.

  • A Washington County woman over 85 years old.

All eight Utahns were hospitalized at the time of death and there are currently 481 people hospitalized with COVID-19 statewide. The health department’s coronavirus dashboard shows that 172 of these people are in intensive care beds.

For the first time this month, the state reported that less than 85% of ICU beds were filled. As of Saturday, that figure was 81.7% (a drop of 88.4% on Thursday), with 83.7% of ICU beds in the state’s largest “benchmark” hospitals.

Doctors and hospital administrators have said these figures do not take into account staff fluctuations or the high demand for specialists and equipment when a large percentage of patients with ICUs are treating the same disease. In practice, doctors have said that the quality of care begins to deteriorate due to the informal rationing that occurs when ICUs reach around 85% of capacity.

A total of 10,522 Utahns have been hospitalized since the outbreak appeared.

The state reported that since Thursday tests were processed for 12,956 people. The health department said 8,879 of these would have been reported on Friday, while the remaining 4,077 would have been reported on Saturday.

Another 2,102 vaccines were administered since Thursday, bringing the total to 16,924. This figure is expected to increase substantially in the coming days as long-term care facilities and more rural hospitals begin dispensing the vaccine.

Correction: Dec. 26, 12:35 p.m. • Utah reported 3,489 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday. An earlier version gave an incorrect figure.

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