(Photo by Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information on the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for February 2, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials on Tuesday reported 2,938 new cases of coronavirus and 238 additional deaths due to COVID-19.
It was the first daily report with less than 3,000 new cases since December 29, but the highest death rate since January 21.
According to Arizona’s COVID-19 dashboard, total state documentation moved to 765,083 infections and 13,362 deaths.
Although key statistics indicate that the massive wave in Arizona that began in November is declining, the virus remains widespread across the state.
The number of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients in Arizona dropped to 3,533 on Monday, the lowest since December 10th. The number of ICU beds used by COVID-19 patients has decreased to 944, the lowest since December 21st.
Across the country, COVID-19 patients admitted 40% of all beds and 52% of all ICU beds on Monday. Overall, indoor beds were 90% of capacity and ICU beds 88%.
Arizona’s weekly percentage of positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic tests, an indication of how much the virus is spreading in the community, is declining but remains at a significant level.
Of the 119,808 people tested last week, 16% had a positive result, the lowest rate since Thanksgiving and the fourth consecutive decline.
Official positivity rates are based on when the samples are taken, not when they are reported, so the percentage for recent weeks may vary as laboratories are caught up in the test and the results are documented by the state.
With Monday’s update of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona has continued to lead the country per capita in average cases over the past seven days, dropping to No. 3 in the deaths behind Alabama and Iowa.
According to The Associated Press report, the seven-day average for the newly reported coronavirus cases was 4,892.86 for Monday, according to The Associated Press report, the lowest point since December 4th. lower than last week, was at 126.43, the second lowest since January 7th.
The state’s daily updates provide the current case, death and testing data after the state receives and confirms statistics, which may be delayed by a few days or longer. It does not represent the actual activity during the last 24 hours.
The hospital data posted each morning is electronically reported the night before by 100 hospitals across the state, as required under executive order.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, has no effect on some people and is severely debilitating or deadly to others. Infected people without symptoms – which include coughing, fever and breathing problems – can spread the virus.
Diagnostic tests are available in hundreds of locations in Arizona and should be sought by someone with symptoms or who has been exposed to an infected person. Information on places, schedules and registration can be found on the website of the Department of Health Services.
The department also has a page for vaccination finders with an active map with a map with locations and registration information.
Below are Tuesday’s latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic from across the state, country and world:
- Worldwide, there were approximately 103.5 million COVID-19 cases and 2.24 million deaths as of Tuesday morning, according to research by Johns Hopkins University. The figures for the US were about 26.32 million cases and 443,000 deaths.