Certified Nurse Mario Rivera applies a Band-Aid after administering the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccination to Anthony Banash at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center on January 21, 2021 in Torrance, California. Banash was the first patient to receive the vaccine at the hospital. (Photo by Mario Tama / Getty Images)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and not just for January 22, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials reported 8,099 new coronavirus cases and 229 additional deaths from COVID-19 on Friday, pushing the pandemic to a total of 700,000 to 12,000.
The state’s documented totals moved to 708,041 infections and 12,001 deaths, according to the Arizona Department of Health’s COVID-19 dashboard.
Since Thursday’s update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona has continued to lead the nation in per capita cases over the past seven days and regained first place in the mortality rate. On Wednesday, Arizona was ranked fourth in per capita deaths in the past seven days.
Hospitalizations in the state of COVID-19 have been declining since record levels rose earlier this week.
The number of hospitalized patients confirmed or suspected of COVID-19 in Arizona fell to 4,495 on Thursday, the lowest since December 28.
Nationally, patients suspected or confirmed of COVID-19 took over 52% of all hospital beds and 58% of all ICU beds on Thursday, both down 1 percentage point from the previous day.
In general, hospital beds remained stable at 92% full, and intensive care beds opened slightly to 91%.
Arizona’s weekly positive test for COVID-19, an indicator of how widespread the virus is in the community, has fallen since a record high of 24 percent three weeks ago.
Of the 59,955 people tested this week, 21% received a positive result, up 1 point from last week’s rate.
Official positivity rates are based on the time of sampling, not the time they are reported, so the percentage in recent weeks may fluctuate as laboratories are tested and the results are documented by the state.
The current seven-day average for coronavirus cases recently reported by the health department was 7,271.71 on Thursday, according to a follow-up by The Associated Press, up from the previous day, for the first time since January 12.
The seven-day average of recently reported COVID-19 deaths moved to 153 on Thursday, rising for the second day in a row.
Daily state updates present case, death, and test data after the state receives and confirms statistics, which may remain for a few days or more. It is not the actual activity of the last 24 hours.
Hospitalization data posted each morning is reported electronically the previous evening by 100 hospitals across the state, as required by the executive order.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, has no impact on some and is severely debilitating or fatal to others. Asymptomatic infected people – which include, but are not limited to, cough, fever, and difficulty breathing – are able to spread the virus.
Diagnostic testing is available in hundreds of locations in Arizona and should be looked for by anyone with symptoms or who may have been exposed to an infected person. Information about locations, programs and registration can be found on the website of the Department of Health Services.
The department also has a vaccine search page with a map of active and pending locations and registration information.
Below are the latest developments on Friday about the coronavirus pandemic across the country, country and world:
- With the fall of the COVID-19 winter wave in Arizona for the first time in a few months, Banner Health will cautiously resume elective operations next week.
- US Representative David Schweikert of Arizona said KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News he declined the chance to be vaccinated for COVID-19 because he “felt horrified” to use his position to cross the line.
- The Navajo Nation reported 143 new cases of coronavirus and 14 additional deaths, bringing the documented totals to 26,955 infections and 954 deaths.
- Globally, there have been approximately 97.65 million COVID-19 cases and 2.09 million deaths since Friday morning, according to research from Johns Hopkins University. The figures for the US were about 24.63 million cases and 410,000 deaths.