The Bible-Based Fellowship Church partnered with the Pasco County Department of Health and the Army National Guard to help residents age 65 and older administer the Modern Covid-19 vaccine on February 13, 2021 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Octavio Jones / Getty Images)
This is a periodically updated story with the latest information on coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond February 17, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona has exceeded 800,000 reported cases of coronavirus and 15,000 deaths from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
State officials reported 1,315 new cases and an additional 82 deaths Wednesday, bringing the total documented to 801,055 infections and 15,063 fatalities, according to the COVID-19 board of the Arizona Department of Health Services.
After rising in early January, the number of cases and hospitalizations has dropped to pre-Thanksgiving levels in Arizona.
The number of hospitalized confirmed or suspected COVID-19s in state hospitals fell to 1,941 on Tuesday, the lowest since Nov. 21.
Arizona’s weekly positivity percentage for diagnostic testing for COVID-19, an indicator of how many viruses are spreading in the community, has been declining each week since the beginning of the year.
Of the 90,406 people tested last week, 9% received a positive result, the lowest rate since the end of October. The rate was 9% for 7,354 people tested so far this week.
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 results are documented by the state.
The seven-day average of recently reported state health department coronavirus cases was 1,781.71 for Tuesday, according to follow-up to The Associated Press, the lowest note since Nov. 9.
The seven-day average of reported deaths had remained stubbornly high since early February, but on Tuesday fell sharply to 99.29, below 100 for the first time since Jan. 5.
In Tuesday’s update of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona ranked third in the country for per capita deaths from COVID-19 in the past seven days and 11th in cases.
Daily updates from the Arizona Department of Health present case, death, and test data 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.
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.
Diagnostic tests are available at hundreds of sites across Arizona and should be looked for by anyone with symptoms or who may have been exposed to an infected person. Information on locations, times, and registration can be found on the Department of Health Services website.
For more information on statewide vaccine availability, the ADHS website has a vaccine search page with a map of locations and registration information.
Below are Wednesday’s latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic across the state, the country and the world:
- The Arizona Department of Health Services reported that 1,291,053 of the state’s 1,395,300 assigned doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, an increase of 63,782 over the previous day. That leaves the state with only 104,247 unused shots until next week’s allotment.
- Globally, there were approximately 109.61 million cases of COVID-19 and 2.42 million deaths as of Wednesday morning, according to research from Johns Hopkins University. U.S. figures were about 27.76 million cases and 488,000 dead.