Medical staff members are working to extract a muscle sample from a patient for a muscle biopsy examination at the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at United Memorial Medical Center on December 22, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Go Nakamura / Getty Images)
This is a periodically updated story with the latest information on coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond December 23, 2020.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials reported 6,058 new coronavirus cases and 54 additional deaths on Wednesday, while state hospitals treat a record number of COVID-19 patients.
According to the Arizona Department of Health Services, the state’s documented totals increased to 473,273 COVID-19 infections and 8,179 deaths.
Daily reports present data on cases, deaths and evidence after the state receives and confirms statistics, which can be delayed for several days or more. They do not represent the actual activity during the last 24 hours.
Multiple metric COVID-19s in Arizona remain at or near pandemic highs.
The number of patients hospitalized at COVID-19 Hospital confirmed or suspected in Arizona rose Tuesday to an all-time high of 4,163, an increase of 144 from the previous day. It was the tenth daily record of coronavirus hospitalized patients in the last 12 days.
The number of patients with COVID-19 in state ICU beds was as high as 972, surpassing the 970 record on 13 July.
Patients with suspected or confirmed state-wide COVID-19 occupied 49% of all hospital beds, a record, and 55% of all ICU beds.
Overall, hospital beds filled 92% and ICU beds recorded a pandemic record of 93%. The state dropped to 119 unused ICU beds, the lowest pandemic number.
The health department’s seven-day average of COVID-19 deaths reached 100.43 on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, which broke the July 30 record of 94.
The seven-day rotating average for recently reported cases was 6,119 on Tuesday, slightly higher than the previous day, but the second-lowest mark since Dec. 11.
Arizona’s weekly positivity percentage for diagnostic tests for COVID-19, an indicator of how many viruses are spreading in the community, is on track to hit a record high after leveling in recent weeks .
For 12,304 tests recorded this week, the positivity rate was 21%, which would match the record for the week that began on June 28th.
The rate was 18% over the previous three weeks.
Official positivity rates are based on when samples are taken, not when they are reported, so the percentage in recent weeks may fluctuate as labs catch up on testing. and the state documents the results.
Hospitalization data released each morning is communicated electronically the night before by 100 hospitals across the state, as required by executive order.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, has no impact on some people and is severely debilitating or deadly to others. Asymptomatic infected people, which include, among other things, cough, fever, and difficulty breathing, are able to spread the virus.
Information about test sites can be found on the Arizona Department of Health Services website.
Below are Wednesday’s latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic across the state, the country and the world:
- With the growth of COVID-19 throughout Arizona, several facilities in Arizona’s largest hospital system, Banner Health, have reduced elective surgeries and operate at more than 100% capacity.
- A group of Arizona State University students won $ 500,000 in a facial mask design contest aimed at overcoming common complaints about protective wear.
- President Donald Trump has threatened to torpedo the massive relief and end-of-year package of the COVID-19 Congress, which has been a tough compromise amid a raging pandemic and deep economic uncertainty demanding changes to which fellow Republicans have opposed it.
- The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell by 89,000 last week, to 803,000 still high, evidence that the labor market continues to be stressed nine months after the coronavirus outbreak sent the US economy to recession and has caused millions of layoffs.
- The director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, Dr. Cara Christ, said she has “hope” that state hospitals will have enough manpower to cope with the continuing increase in patients with COVID- 19.
- Pfizer and BioNTech will supply the U.S. with an additional 100 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine under a second agreement.
- Said Will Humble, executive director of the Arizona Public Health Association KTAR News 92.3 Chad and Gaydos FM Show that a new variant of the coronavirus discovered in the United Kingdom may already be in the United States, but this is not a concern.
- Globally, there were approximately 78.17 million cases of COVID-19 and 1.72 million deaths as of Wednesday morning, according to research from Johns Hopkins University. U.S. figures were about 18.24 million cases and 323,000 deaths.