Arizona is reporting a record number of patients in intensive care units (ICUs) who have or are suspected of having the coronavirus, announcing more than 10,000 new cases and 42 more deaths from the virus on Sunday.
The Republic of Arizona reported on Monday that 4,390 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized the day before, significantly higher than the peak of 3,517 observed in the summer. Some 1,007 suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients were in ICUs, surpassing the previous record of 970 in July.
According to the Arizona coronavirus data dashboard, 91 percent of the ICU beds in the state are occupied and more than half by COVID-19 patients. There are currently less than 200 IC beds and 1,000 non-IC beds available, the Republic reports.
Along with the record number of ICU patients, the number of Arizona coronavirus patients on ventilators also hit a record high on Sunday: 715.
The paper notes that the unusually high number of new cases reported, 10,086, is due to the state adding several days of cases at a time following the recent holidays. The number of new cases has been more than 2,000 in 31 of the 33 past days, the Republic reports, and over 4,000 cases have been reported on 27 of those days.
In the U.S., Arizona is currently ranked third in terms of seven-day averages for new cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s data dashboard, surpassed only by California and Tennessee.
The impact of the recent holiday season has yet to be seen, but experts have warned that a new wave could be imminent as thousands of families gathered despite warnings from government agencies not to do so.
The state began its coronavirus vaccination plan on December 14, the Republic reports. Primary health workers, early responders and people in vulnerable populations have been prioritized.
The order in which the vaccines are deployed is left to the state governments to decide, and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey
Doug Ducey Voters cast vote for Biden amid simmering national tensions Chris Christie calls Trump legal team’s legal theory an ‘absurdity’ Twitter briefly restricts user interaction with Trump’s tweets about ‘stolen’ elections MORE (R) has not yet announced who will be next in line, although the paper notes that he has assured residents that the vaccine will be free for everyone once it is widely available.