Alaskan coronavirus cases have steadily declined in recent months, following an outbreak of infections in November and early December that hampered the hospital’s capacity.
Alaska hospitalizations are now less than a quarter of what they were during November and December. As of Friday, there were 33 people with COVID-19 in hospitals across the state, including four on ventilators. Other patient was suspected of having the virus.
The COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Alaska in mid-December. On Friday, 137,124 people – nearly 19% of the Alaskan population – received at least their first vaccine, according to the state’s vaccine monitoring panel. This is well above the national average of 12.4%. Among Alaskans aged 16 and over, 24% received at least one dose of the vaccine by Friday. The Pfizer vaccine has been authorized for use by people aged 16 and over, and Moderna has been approved for use by people aged 18 and over.
Health professionals and employees of nursing homes and residents were the first people prioritized to receive the vaccine. Alaskans over 65 became eligible in early January, and the state further expanded the eligibility criteria last week to include educators, people aged 50 and over with a high-risk medical condition, essential health workers. people aged 50 or over and people living or working together in settings such as shelters and prisons.
Those eligible to receive the vaccine can visit covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322 to apply and confirm eligibility. The telephone line is open from 9 am to 6:30 pm on weekdays and from 9 am to 4:30 pm on weekends.
Despite the lower case numbers, public health officials continue to encourage Alaskans to follow up on personal virus mitigation efforts, such as washing hands, wearing a mask and socializing. A highly contagious variant of the virus arrived in Alaska in December.
Of the 185 cases reported among Alaskan residents on Friday, there were 59 in Anchorage, one more in Chugiak and five in Eagle River; two in Kenai; one in Soldotna; one in Kodiak; 18 in Fairbanks plus one at the North Pole; one on Big Lake; 11 in Palmer; one in Sutton-Alpine; 38 in Wasilla; two in Utqiagvik; six at Juneau; 15 in Ketchikan; one in Petersburg; two in Sitka; one in Wrangell; one in Unalaska; and one in Dillingham.
Among communities with populations under 1,000 unidentified to protect privacy, there were three in the Copper River Census Area; one in the south of the Kenai Borough Peninsula; three in the Yukon-Koyukuk census area; one in the Yakutat region plus Hoonah Angoon; and nine in the Bethel Census Area;
Twenty-five cases were also identified among non-residents: one in Anchorage, one in Fairbanks, one in Juneau and 22 in Unalaska.
Although people can be tested more than once, each case reported by the state health department represents only one person.
State data does not specify whether people who test positive for COVID-19 have symptoms. More than half of the country’s infections are transmitted by asymptomatic people, according to CDC estimates.
Of all tests performed in the last seven days, on average 2.27% were positive.