(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Science teacher Robert Campos clears offices in the classroom as students return to Highland High School in Salt Lake City on Monday, February 8, 2021.
The number of new cases of COVID-19 remains low in Utah – 651 on Friday, the 13th day in the last two weeks, the number was below 1,000.
However, the state recorded 17 new deaths from the virus, although eight of them occurred before 5 February.
Last day vaccine doses / total doses administered • 22,092 / 682,536.
Number of Utahns who received two doses • 239,877.
Cases reported the other day • 651.
Deaths reported last day • 17; eight of these happened before February 5th.
• Nine in Salt Lake County: two men between the ages of 45 and 64; one man and two women, each 65-84; two men and two women, each 85 years of age or older.
• Two Utah County residents: a man 85 years of age or older and a woman 45-64 years old.
• Two residents of Weber County: a man and a woman, each aged 85 or over.
• Two men, 45-64 – one from Iron County, one from Tooele County.
• A woman in Uintah County who is 85 years of age or older and a man in Washington County 65-84.
Hospitalizations reported last day • 231. That increased by 10 on Thursday. Of those currently hospitalized, 94 are in intensive care units – seven more than on Thursday.
Tests reported the other day • 5,498 people were tested for the first time. A total of 15,599 people were tested.
Percentage of positive tests • According to the initial state method, the rate is 11.8%. This is slightly lower than the seven-day average of 12.3%.
His new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Friday’s rate is now 4.2%, lower than the seven-day average of 5.6%.
Totals so far • 370,084 cases; 1,907 deaths; 14,628 hospitalizations; 2,194,674 people tested; 3,781,119 tests performed.
Dr. Mark Briesacher, chief executive officer at Intermountain Healthcare, said Friday that he is pleased that a third vaccine, produced by Johnson & Johnson, should be available in Utah as soon as next week.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, Briesacher said during the weekly COVID-19 community meeting on Facebook Live, is 85% effective in preventing severe cases – those that could lead to hospitalization or death. The Federal Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve the emergency use of the new vaccine immediately on Saturday.
“Does it prevent severe and critical diseases? Does it prevent deaths? The answer to these things is “yes,” Briesacher said.
“It will be really great for Utah in general because it’s a simpler vaccine” than the Pfizer or Moderna versions available now, Briesacher said. “It’s just a single dose. It is stored more easily. This gives us a lot of flexibility to focus on delivering this in a fair way across the state. ”
The prospect of three vaccines available for COVID-19 is far from February 28, 2020 – a year ago this Sunday – when Briesacher attended the first meeting of the state incident command, “everyone focused on preparing to accept this first [COVID-19] pasta in Utah, ”he said.
“It’s been a tough, challenging year,” Briesacher said. “We will all look back on this year and think of it as one of the most challenging and rewarding moments. … And yet we find ourselves in a truly wonderful place, where there is a lot of optimism about the future. ”