SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Department of Health is reporting 1,585 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 testing in the state on Sunday, along with eight new reported deaths.
This leads Utah to a total of 323,837 confirmed cases and 1,493 deaths since the pandemic began.
Currently, the health department says 557 Utahns are hospitalized due to COVID-19, including 226 in intensive care. The health department website says Utah UTI referral beds are more than 100% full, with a total of 458 patients being treated, although 453 beds are available.
Sunday’s figures come as the state conducted an additional 14,727 tests, 7,199 of which were for people who had not previously tested.
Last week, the state registered an average of 2,209 new cases reported per day and a positive test rate of 22.6%. The health department says 157,170 total doses of the coronavirus vaccine have already been administered in Utah, plus 4,661 doses from the previous day.
Almost 15,000 Utahns received their second dose of vaccine; both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses for maximum effectiveness. The state started vaccinating health professionals and has now passed on to teachers and residents over 70 years old.
There is no press conference scheduled for state leaders on coronavirus over the weekend. Governor Spencer Cox and health officials are due to hold a conference later this week; it usually takes place on Thursdays.
The Utahns whose deaths were reported on Sunday included seven men who were all hospitalized when they died:
- A Carbon County man between the ages of 65 and 84
- A man from Millard County between 65 and 84 years old
- Two Utah County men aged 45 to 64
- A Utah County man between 65 and 84
- A Washington County man between 65 and 84
- A Washington County man over 85
An Iron County woman aged 65 to 84, who lived in a long-term care facility, was also included.
Methodology:
The test results now include data from PCR tests and antigen tests. Positive results from the COVID-19 test are reported to the health department immediately after they are confirmed, but negative test results can take 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 beginning of the Utah outbreak, including those who are infected, those who have recovered from the disease and those who have died.
Recovered cases are defined as anyone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 three or more weeks ago and has not died.
Referral hospitals are Utah’s 16 hospitals capable of providing the best COVID-19 healthcare.
Deaths reported by the state typically occurred two to seven days before they were reported, according to the health department. Some deaths can be even older, especially if the person is from Utah, but died in another state.
The health department reports deaths from confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases according to the case definition outlined by the State Council and Territorial Epidemiologists. Death counts are subject to change as case investigations are completed.
For deaths reported as deaths from COVID-19, the person would not have died if they did not have COVID-19, according to the health department.
The data included in this story mainly reflects the state of Utah as a whole. For more localized data, visit your local health district’s website.
More information about Utah’s health guidance levels is available at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-health-guidance-levels.
The information is 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 the bottom of the page.
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Graham Dudley