SALT LAKE CITY – The state health department reports 2,408 new cases confirmed by the trial and eight deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday as part of its daily release of updated coronavirus statistics in Utah.
This brings Utah to a total of 248,970 cases and 1,148 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began. In an email, the health department said seven of the deaths were reported Saturday when Utahns were hospitalized at the time:
- A Salt Lake County man between the ages of 65 and 84
- A Salt Lake County man between the ages of 45 and 64
- A Salt Lake County woman between the ages of 45 and 64
- Two women from Salt Lake County between the ages of 65 and 84
- A Box Elder County man between the ages of 65 and 84
- A Davis County woman between the ages of 45 and 64
A 85-year-old Utah County man was not hospitalized when he died, officials said.
The health department began Saturday to provide additional information on COVID-19 vaccinations in Utah. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has so far approved two vaccines, Pfizer and Modern, and the Pfizer vaccine has begun to be used in Utah. The health department reports that so far 3,648 first doses of the vaccine have been administered; the Pfizer vaccine requires two doses.
The department also reported that the federal government has shipped 23,400 doses of vaccine to Utah so far.
“There will be a lag between when vaccines are shipped, administered to a person and finally reported to the UDOH,” the department said in an email. “For this reason, the number of people vaccinated will potentially lag behind the total number of vaccines sent in 7 or more days.”
Utah is currently in the process of vaccinating state health personnel. First-line workers working with COVID-19 patients were considered to be the top priority for vaccination.
On Saturday, the health department said 559 Utahns are currently hospitalized due to COVID-19 and that 218 of those patients are intensive. The new number of cases comes when 10,101 more Utahns were tested.
Over the past week, the state averaged 2,454 new cases a day and a positive test rate of 22.1%.
There are no coronavirus press conferences scheduled for state leaders over the weekend. On Thursday, Gov. Gary Herbert announced during a conference that the state has ended the 10 p.m. curfew on the sale of alcohol to bars and restaurants and that Utah has relaxed its guidelines for determining when students will have to quarantine after a possible exposure to COVID. 19.
A total of 85 coronavirus-related deaths were reported in Utah between Monday and Friday this week.
Methodology:
Test results now include PCR test data and antigen testing. Positive COVID-19 test results are reported to the health department immediately after confirmation, but negative results may not be reported within 24 to 72 hours.
The total number of cases reported daily by the Utah Department of Health includes all cases of COVID-19 since the Utah outbreak began, including those that are currently infected, those that have recovered from the disease, and those who have died.
Recovered cases are defined as anyone who was diagnosed with COVID-19 three or more weeks ago and who has not died.
The reference hospitals are the 16 hospitals in Utah with the capacity to provide the best COVID-19 health care.
According to the health department, deaths reported by the state usually occur two to seven days before their complaint. Some deaths may be even further back, especially if the person is from Utah but has died in another state.
The health department reports both confirmed deaths and probable cases of COVID-19 as defined in the case reviewed by the Council of State and territorial epidemiologists. Death counts may change as case investigations are completed.
According to the health department, for deaths reported as deaths from COVID-19, the person would not have died if they did not have COVID-19.
The data included in this story primarily reflects the state of Utah as a whole. For more localized data, visit your local health district website.
You can learn more about Utah health guidance levels at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-health-guidance-levels.
The information comes from the Utah Department of Health and coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts. For more information on how the Utah Department of Health compiles and reports COVID-19 data, visit coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts and scroll down to the “Data Notes” section at bottom of the page.
Graham Dudley