Utah reported another 467 cases of coronavirus on Saturday.
(Francisco Kjolseth | Photo Tribune file) Nurse Julia Paas, right, goes over information with Betsy Altschuler as she prepares to receive her second dose of COVID-19 vaccine at Utah Film Studios in Park City on Thursday, March 18, 2021.
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Another 467 Utah patients tested positive for coronavirus, state health officials said Saturday, but the number of people hospitalized and seriously ill fell on the last day.
The daily positivity rate of the test was slightly below the seven-day average, although on Friday a doctor with infectious diseases expressed concern that the daily number of cases in the state could be lower than continue to fall and encouraged people to he doesn’t let his guard down yet.
Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said Saturday she did not rule out trying to pass a local mask warrant after April 10, when face-to-face coverage requirements nationwide would cease based on a bill recently passed by the U.S. legislature. Utah. The measure, which has not yet been signed into law by Governor Spencer Cox, would allow county and city councils to adopt their own mandates – but they would expire as soon as the state meets certain virus retention criteria.
Utah is already close to meeting the thresholds set out in the bill.
Wilson said the most likely scenario for a county-level mandate would be if the health department recommends one and the county council approves it.
“We are currently working through these options and are awaiting the approval of the bill,” she said.
The two top local leaders of the state are now in a similar position when it comes to the possibility of adopting masked mandates after April 10, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said earlier this week that city attorneys are evaluating the option. Mendenhall also urged local companies to keep applying masks until public health officials say it is safe to leave without them, and Wilson said he supports the advice.
Last day vaccine doses / total doses administered • 25,861 / 1,137,046.
Utahns fully vaccinated • 413,058.
Cases reported the other day • 467.
Deaths reported last day • 2.
Davis County reported only one death: a man between the ages of 65 and 84.
A death was reported in Weber County, a man aged between 65 and 85 years.
Hospitalizations reported last day • 160. It fell 16 on Friday. Of those currently hospitalized, 57 are in intensive care units – four fewer than on Friday.
Tests reported the other day • 6,451 people were tested for the first time. A total of 14,990 people were tested.
Percentage of positive tests • According to the initial state method, the rate is 7.1%. This is lower than the seven-day average of 8.1%.
His new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Saturday’s rate is now 3.1%, lower than the seven-day average of 4.1%.
[Read more: Utah is changing how it measures the rate of positive COVID-19 tests. Here’s what that means.]
Totals so far • 381,254 cases; 2,060 deaths; 15,267 hospitalizations; 2,327,182 people tested.
– Tribune reporter Leia Larsen contributed to this report.