Volunteers go as people who have already received vaccinations waiting inside vehicles at a massive COVID-19 vaccination site in a Six Flags Magic Mountain parking lot on February 2, 2020 in Valencia, California. The site of one of the five major coronavirus vaccine sites is operated by Los Angeles County. (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 February 3, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials reported 2,296 new coronavirus cases and 214 additional deaths from COVID-19 on Wednesday.
It is the lowest daily case report since December 27 and the third lowest since November. It is also the first time since November 16-17, with less than 3,000 cases reported for two consecutive days.
The state’s documented totals have risen to 767,379 infections and 13,576 deaths, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ COVID-19 dashboard.
While values show that the massive growth in Arizona, which began in November, is receding, the virus remains widespread throughout the country.
COVID-19 hospitalizations are now lower than at the peak of the state’s first wave in July, but cases and deaths are even higher.
The number of hospitalized patients confirmed or suspected by Arizona for COVID-19 fell to 3,456 on Tuesday, the lowest since December 9.
Nationally, patients with COVID-19 took over 40% of all hospital beds and 53% of all ICU beds on Tuesday. In general, hospital beds were at 90% capacity and ICU beds at 91%.
The weekly positive percentage in Arizona for testing for the diagnosis of COVID-19, an indicator of how widespread the virus is in the community, has declined, but remains at a substantial level.
Of the 125,134 people tested last week, 16% received a positive result, the lowest rate before Thanksgiving and the fourth consecutive weekly decline.
So far this week, the positive rate has been 14% for 12,158 people tested.
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.
In Tuesday’s update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona fell from first to third in the country, with average per capita cases over the past seven days, behind Texas and South Carolina. Arizona fell from the third to fourth deaths, behind Alabama, South Carolina and Iowa.
The seven-day average for recently reported health department coronavirus cases was 4,634.29 for Tuesday, according to a follow-up by The Associated Press, the lowest note since Dec. 3. consecutive day at 130.57.
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 in the previous evening by 100 hospitals across the state, as required in 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 location map and registration information.
Below are the latest developments on Wednesday about the coronavirus pandemic across the country, country and world:
- Maricopa County Public Health said some unused coronavirus vaccines have been discarded, but only to maintain quality and safety.
- Nothing but a miracle is how a Valley doctor described the recovery of a COVID-19 patient who spent more than four months in hospital.
- With increased demand, the city of Phoenix has launched the second COVID-19 mobile test unit.
- The administration of President Joe Biden has announced that it is moving to expand access to COVID-19 vaccines, releasing more doses to states and starting distributing them to retail pharmacies next week.
- Globally, there have been approximately 103.98 million COVID-19 cases and 2.26 million deaths since Wednesday morning, according to research from Johns Hopkins University. The figures for the US were about 26.44 million cases and 447,000 deaths.