SALT LAKE CITY – One year after the fateful Utah Jazz game, which would raise the seriousness of the recently declared COVID-19 pandemic, Utah has exceeded the negative level of 2,000 total COVID-19 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.
But state leaders remained optimistic Thursday, as a record number of Utahns continue to be vaccinated against the disease.
“We are incredibly optimistic about where we are,” Governor Spencer Cox told a news conference Thursday.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Utah rose 646 on Thursday, with 23 more deaths and 34,290 reported vaccinations, according to the Utah Department of Health.
Fifteen of the deaths occurred before Feb. 11, but were still under investigation by state medical examiners, the health department reported. Thursday’s total deaths put Utah at 2,015 reported deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.
Cox pointed out that 2,000 COVID-19 deaths were considered a “best case scenario” for Utah based on several projections of the effect of the disease on the state. But it did not minimize the fact that 2,000 people lost their lives.
“It’s still incredibly tragic,” the governor said.
About 150,000 Utahns have been vaccinated in the past week, a significant increase in vaccinations in the previous week, Government Lt. Deidre Henderson said on Thursday. More than 34,000 Utahs were vaccinated Wednesday, which is a record vaccination day for Utah, she added.
About 79 percent of Utahns aged 70 and over now receive at least one dose of the vaccine, which exceeds the national average for that age group, according to Cox and Henderson. About 64% of Utah’s 65-69 age group have now received at least one dose, while about 29% of the 50-64 age group now have a dose after eligibility was extended to that group last week. .
Although Utah reached the tragic death toll on Thursday, state leaders anticipate adopting a much more optimistic benchmark in the coming days: Utah will soon administer its 1 millionth dose of vaccine, Henderson said.
“We are very pleased with that,” she said. “Our workers are doing such a good job.”
Cox did not extend his eligibility for any new groups on Thursday. The governor’s office announced earlier this week that eligibility will be extended to every Utah adult who wants a vaccine by April 1, a target Cox reiterated Thursday.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox offered an update on the COVID-19 pandemic Thursday morning. Lt. Government Deidre Henderson and the Utah Department of Health, state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn also spoke at the event. Watch the replay of the press conference below.
New COVID-19 cases
The Department of Health now estimates that there are 12,935 active cases of COVID-19 in Utah.
The average continuous number of seven positive days a day is now 524, according to the health department. The positive daily test rate for that period compared to the “people over people” method is now 8.4%. The positive test rate per day, an average of seven days calculated using the “test over test” method, is now 4%.
There are 167 COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized in Utah, including 66 in intensive care, state data show. About 70% of the beds in intensive care units at Utah hospitals are now occupied, including about 71% of the ICU beds at the state’s 16 referral hospitals. About 56 percent of non-ICU hospital beds are now occupied, according to the health department.
A total of 936,681 vaccines were administered in the state, up from 902,391 on Wednesday. A total of 618,337 Utahns have now received at least one dose of vaccine, and 339,743 have been completely vaccinated against COVID-19. A total of 1,151,265 doses of vaccine have now been delivered to Utah.
Thursday’s total gives Utah 376,973 confirmed cases in total, with 15,014 total hospitalizations and 2,015 total deaths from the disease. A total of 362,023 cases in Utah COVID-19 are now considered recovered, according to state data.
This story will be updated.