Certified Medical Assistant Mario Rivera applies a patch after administering a COVID-19 Pfizer vaccination to Anthony Banash at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center on Jan. 21, 2021 in Torrance, California. Banash was the first patient to receive the vaccine in the hospital. (Photo by Mario Tama / Getty Images)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for January 22, 2021.
PHOENIX – Health officials in Arizona reported 8,099 new cases of coronavirus and 229 additional deaths from COVID-19 on Friday, putting pandemic totals above 700,000 and 12,000.
The state’s documented totals have risen to 708,041 infections and 12,001 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services COVID-19 dashboard.
As of Thursday’s update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona has continued to lead the nation in per capita cases for the past seven days, regaining the top spot for the death rate. On Wednesday, Arizona was ranked fourth in the number of deaths per capita for the past seven days.
COVID-19 hospital admissions in the state are on a downward trend since reaching a record high early last week.
The number of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients in Arizona fell to 4,495 Thursday, the lowest number since Dec. 28. The number of IC beds used by COVID-19 patients dropped to 1,054, the second lowest since December 28.
Statewide, suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients occupied 52% of all hospital beds and 58% of all IC beds on Thursday, both 1 percentage point lower than the previous day.
Overall, the patient’s beds remained stable at 92% full and the IC beds opened slightly to 91%.
Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic tests, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, has dropped since it hit a record high of 24% three weeks ago.
Of the 59,955 people tested this week, 21% got a positive result, 1 point more than last week’s rate.
Official positivity rates are based on when the samples are taken, not when they are reported, so the rate for the past few weeks may fluctuate as labs are testing and the results are documented by the state.
The seven-day moving average for the state health department’s newly reported coronavirus cases was 7,271.71 Thursday, according to tracking by The Associated Press, and increased from the previous day for the first time since Jan. 12.
The seven-day average of newly reported COVID-19 deaths rose to 153 for Thursday and rose for the second consecutive day.
The state updates current case, death, and test data daily after the state receives and confirms statistics, which can delay several days or more. They do not represent actual activity for the past 24 hours.
The hospitalization data posted each morning is reported electronically the night before by 100 hospitals across the state as required under executive order.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, does not affect some people and is seriously disabling or fatal for others. Infected people without symptoms – including but not limited to a cough, fever, and difficulty breathing – can spread the virus.
Diagnostic tests are available at hundreds of locations in Arizona and should be sought by anyone with symptoms or who may have been exposed to an infected person. Information on locations, schedules, and registration can be found on the Department of Health Services website.
The department also has a vaccine finder page with a map of active and pending locations and registration information.
Below are Friday’s latest developments regarding the coronavirus pandemic from around the state, country and world:
- With the COVID-19 wave waning in Arizona in winter for the first time in months, Banner Health will cautiously resume elective surgery next week.
- Told US Representative David Schweikert from Arizona KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona Morning News he turned down a chance to get vaccinated for COVID-19 because “it felt scary” to use his position to get to the start of the line.
- The Navajo Nation reported 143 new cases of coronavirus and 14 additional deaths, bringing the documented totals to 26,955 infections and 954 fatalities.
- According to research from Johns Hopkins University, there were approximately 97.65 million COVID-19 cases worldwide and 2.09 million deaths on Friday morning. The figures for the US were about 24.63 million cases and 410,000 deaths.