Emergency paramedic Mandy Fleck prepares a Corona vaccine syringe from Biontech / Pfizer in Emsleben, Germany, March 10, 2021. (Matthias Bein / dpa via AP)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information on the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond, on March 10, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona public health officials on Wednesday reported 830 new cases of coronavirus and 78 additional deaths from COVID-19.
The daily update of the case has now remained below 1,000 for three consecutive days for the first time since a stretch from October 21st to 24th. The deaths were the first reported since Sunday and eclipsed the combined total of the previous four days.
The state’s documented totals have been updated to 828,630 coronavirus infections and 16,404 deaths, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services COVID-19 panel.
The main state metrics used to measure the severity of the pandemic continue to improve and are the lowest in months, and more than 20% of the Arizona population has received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The ADHS panel showed that 2,251,363 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were administered in the state, a daily increase of 53,987, with 1,442,915 people (20.1% of the state’s population) having received at least one injection.
The number of confirmed or suspected inpatients with COVID-19 in state hospitals dropped to 868 on Tuesday, the lowest since October 26. The number of ICU beds used by patients with COVID-19 has dropped to 251, the lowest since November 6.
Arizona’s weekly positivity percentage for the COVID-19 diagnostic test, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, reached its lowest level in five months.
Of the 77,104 people tested last week, 5% received a positive result, the lowest percentage of positivity since the beginning of October. The rate for 9,560 people this week was 6%.
Official positivity rates are based on when samples are collected, not when they are reported, so the percentage of the past few weeks may fluctuate as laboratories update tests and results are documented by the state.
Daily updates from the Arizona Department of Health present data on cases, deaths and tests after the state receives the statistics and confirms them, which can take several days or more. They do not represent actual activity in the past 24 hours.
Hospitalization data published every morning is reported electronically the night before by hospitals across the state, as required by executive order.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, has no impact on some people and is severely debilitating or fatal for others. Infected people with no symptoms – which include, but are not limited to cough, fever and difficulty breathing – are able to spread the virus.
The diagnostic test is available in hundreds of locations across Arizona and should be sought out by anyone with symptoms or who may have been exposed to an infected person. Information on locations, times and registration can be found on the Department of Health Services website.
For details on the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine across the state, the ADHS website has a vaccine location page with a location map and registration and eligibility information.
Below are Wednesday’s latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic across the state, country and world:
- The US House of Representatives approved the Senate version of the $ 1.9 trillion COVID aid package without a Republican vote and sent the bill, which includes checks for $ 1,400 for most Americans, to President Joe Biden.
- The Navajo Nation reported 13 new cases of coronavirus and one additional death, bringing the documented total to 29,900 infections and 1,205 deaths.
- Arizona health experts have mixed reactions to the new guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for people fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
- Arizona Governor Doug Ducey and his top health official said they regret that people struggled to make an appointment for a vaccine and are working to make it as easy as possible.
- The Navajo Nation on Wednesday announced plans for a “smooth reopening” for companies as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations decrease and vaccinations increase.
- Globally, there were about 117.69 million cases of COVID-19 and 2.61 million deaths on Wednesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University research. The figures for the US are around 29.1 million cases and 527,000 deaths.