SALT LAKE CITY – The gradual decline in confirmed COVID-19 cases in Utah continued on Sunday as the state health department reported 1,194 new cases, as well as two additional deaths from the disease.
The department also says a further 10,176 Utahns have been vaccinated against the coronavirus, for a total of 310,692 doses now being administered. More than 63,000 Utahns have now received a second dose of vaccine, which is necessary for maximum effectiveness.
Currently, 413 Utahns are hospitalized for the coronavirus, including 131 in intensive care. That’s reduced statewide ICU capacity to just below 85%, the point at which hospitals view ICUs as “functionally full.”
In the past week, the state reported an average of 1,464 new cases per day and a positive test rate of 16.9%.
The new numbers come as 12,862 additional test results have been reported as of Saturday, including 6,472 Utahns test that had not been previously tested.
In total, Sunday’s update brings the state to 346,624 confirmed cases; 1,665 dead; 3,339,677 tests conducted on 2,024,647 different people; and 13,468 related hospital admissions.
The two reported deaths were of an Iron County woman over 85 who had been hospitalized when she died; and a Weber County man between the ages of 45 and 64 who was not hospitalized.
There is no press conference on COVID-19 from state officials this weekend. Gov. Spencer Cox and health officials will inform the public of the state’s pandemic response later this week; the conference usually takes place on Thursday.
Last week
Methodology:
The test results now include data from PCR tests and antigen tests. Positive COVID-19 test results will be reported to the health department immediately after they are confirmed, but negative test results may not be reported until after 24 to 72 hours.
The total number of cases reported by the Utah Department of Health each day includes all cases of COVID-19 since the Utah outbreak began, including those currently infected, those who 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 has not died.
Referral hospitals are the 16 hospitals in Utah that can provide the best COVID-19 healthcare.
Deaths reported by the state usually occurred two to seven days before they were reported, according to the health department. Some deaths may be further back, especially if the person is from Utah but died in another state.
The health department reports both confirmed and probable deaths from COVID-19 according to the case definition set forth by the Council of State and territorial epidemiologists. Death rates are subject to change as the investigation of the case is completed.
For deaths reported as COVID-19 deaths, the person would not have died if they had not had COVID-19, according to the health department.
The data in this story primarily reflects the state of Utah as a whole. Visit your local health district website for more localized information.
More information on Utah health guidelines is available at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-health-guidance-levels.
Information is from the Utah Department of Health and coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts. For more information on how the Utah Department of Health collects and reports COVID-19 data, visit coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts and scroll down to the “Data Notes” section at the bottom of the page.
Graham Dudley