FILE – In this photo from the December 17, 2020 file, Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine Syringes are seen at Edward Hospital in Naperville, Illinois (Photo AP / Nam Y. Huh)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and not just for December 22, 2020.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials reported 5,859 new coronavirus cases and 153 additional deaths on Tuesday.
It was the second highest single-day death toll of the pandemic, behind just 172 on July 30, and the fifth time in seven days with three digits.
The state’s documented total has risen to 467,215 COVID-19 infections and 8,125 deaths, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
The daily reports present data on the case, death and testing after the state receives statistics and confirms them, which can remain for a few days or more. It is not the actual activity of the last 24 hours.
More COVID-19 values in Arizona remain at or near pandemic highs.
The number of patients admitted to COVID-19 Hospital confirmed or suspected in Arizona rose Monday to a record 4,019, surpassing the mark set on Friday.
The number of patients with COVID-19 in ICU state beds was up to 943, the second highest, registering only on July 1370, 970.
At the national level, patients suspected or confirmed by COVID-19 took 47% of the total hospital beds, corresponding to a record level and 53% of all ICU beds.
Overall, hospital beds were 91% full, as were intensive care beds.
Arizona’s weekly positivity test for the diagnosis of COVID-19, an indicator of how widespread the virus is in the community, also shows signs of leveling.
Through 153,468 tests for last week, the positivity rate was 18%, matching the rate of the last two weeks.
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.
Hospitalization data posted each morning is reported electronically the previous evening by 100 hospitals across the state, as required by the executive order.
The seven-day average continues for the recently reported cases of the health department was 5871 months, according to the follow-up made by The Associated Press, with almost 2,000 below the peak reached a week earlier and the mark of December 8.
The seven-day average of recently reported COVID-19 deaths has tripled this month and is just below the pandemic record of 94 set on July 31. ever.
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.
Information about test locations can be found on the Arizona Department of Health Services website.
Below are the latest developments on Tuesday about the coronavirus pandemic across the country, country and world:
- Globally, there have been approximately 77.53 million COVID-19 cases and 1.7 million deaths since Tuesday morning, according to research from Johns Hopkins University. The figures for the US were about 18.04 million cases and 319,000 deaths.