(AP Photo / Ross D. Franklin, File)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information on the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for January 9, 2021.
PHOENIX – Health officials in Arizona reported 11,094 new cases of coronavirus and 98 additional deaths from COVID-19 Saturday.
The state’s documented totals have risen to 607,345 COVID-19 infections and 10,036 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services dashboard.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona had the highest rate of coronavirus cases as of Friday and the second-highest per capita death rate nationally in the past seven days.
Arizona hospitals continued to see record numbers or near record numbers of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients.
The number of hospital patients at the COVID-19 hospital in Arizona rose by 11 Friday to 4,918, two below the day’s record and the second highest on record.
The number of COVID-19 patients in the state’s IC beds fell to 1,121, a decrease of 1 from the number in use Thursday.
Statewide, suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients occupied a record 57% of all hospital beds and 62% of all IC beds.
In total, the hospitalization beds were each 93% full, corresponding to the pandemic high, with 92% of the IC bed in use. Only 138 IC beds were unused.
Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic tests, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, is the highest it has ever been.
So far this week, 25% of the 105,565 people tested got a positive result. The percentage of positivity was a record 25% last week.
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 health department’s newly reported coronavirus cases was 9,426.29 for Friday, the highest ever and the second consecutive day above 9,000, according to tracking by The Associated Press.
The seven-day mean of newly reported COVID-19 deaths was 131.86 for Friday, more than six higher than the previous day’s record.
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 hospital admission data posted each morning is electronically reported 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 severely 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.
Below are Saturday’s latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic from across the state, country and world:
- The Navajo Nation reported 175 new coronavirus cases and a further three deaths, bringing the documented totals to 24,979 infections and 869 fatalities.
- According to research from Johns Hopkins University, there were approximately 89 million COVID-19 cases and 1.91 million deaths on Saturday morning worldwide. The figures for the US were about 21.87 million cases and 368,947 deaths.