Alaska on Tuesday reported 17 deaths from COVID-19 – all identified during a standard review process for death certificates, according to the Department of Health and Social Services in Alaska – and 140 new coronavirus infections.
It takes about nine days before a death is registered, and then up to three weeks for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to codify and classify the deaths. CDC specialists rely on the cause of death noted by a medical professional to confirm each death.
This reporting process has been around for decades and is considered the most accurate way to detect COVID-19 deaths, health officials said.
Several Anchorage residents were involved in the deaths, including three women in their 90s, a man in his 90s, a woman in her 80s, two men in their 70s, two men in their 50s and a man in his 40s; a man in his 80s and a woman in her 70s, both from the Bethel census area; A Palmer man in his 80s; A Wasilla man in his 80s; A Soldotna woman in her 60s; A Ketchikan man in his 50s; and a woman from Alaska in her 60s who died outside the state.
In the past, the large number of deaths reported in one day was also the result of the review process. On January 20, the state reported 24 COVID-19 deaths, most reported in one day. All but one of these deaths were identified during a revision certificate. The previous record was set on December 12, when 18 deaths were recorded, including only five that occurred recently.
A total of 277 Alaskans and two non-residents with COVID-19 have died since the pandemic hit the state in March.
Alaska’s per capita mortality rate remains among the lowest in the country, although the state’s size and vulnerable health care system make national comparisons difficult.
The state also reported 140 new infections on Tuesday, continuing a downturn in recent months, followed by a surge in November and early December.
Hospitalizations also continued to decline. By Tuesday, there were 42 people with COVID-19 in state-wide hospitals and seven more patients suspected of having the virus. Hospitalizations are now less than a third of what they were during the early winter peak.
Despite the small numbers during January, Alaska is still in the highest alert category based on the current infection rate per capita.
The seafood industry has been hit again with several outbreaks among vessels and processing facilities in the Aleut Islands. Some of the facilities closed temporarily just as the winter fishing season began.
Vaccines first arrived in the state in December, and by Tuesday, at least 96,858 people – about 13% of the state’s population – had received at least the first dose, according to the State Vaccine Monitoring Panel. At least 28,911 people received both doses.
According to a national tracker, Alaska has so far vaccinated a higher percentage of its total population than any other state.
Healthcare workers and staff and nursing homes and residents were the first group to receive the vaccinations. Earlier this month, the state opened the vaccines to adults over the age of 65, although the appointment slots were limited and filled quickly, and the overall vaccination of vaccines was slower than officials had originally hoped.
The state’s priority remains to vaccinate adults 65 and older, who are particularly vulnerable to serious illness and death from the virus.
For more information on vaccinations, visit covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322 for assistance with scheduling.
Of the 111 cases reported Tuesday among Alaska residents were 54 in Anchorage plus two in Chugiak and five in Eagle River; one in Homer; three in Kenai; two in Soldotna; one in Kodiak; eight in Fairbanks; one in Esther; three in the North Pole; two in Big Lake; 11 in Palmer; 11 in Wasilla; two in Juneau; and one in Unalaska.
Among communities with a population below 1,000 that were not named for privacy protection, there was one in the Yukon-Koyukuk census area and three in the Aleutians district.
Twenty-nine non-residents also tested positive for the virus, including two in Anchorage, two in Juneau, two in Unalaska and 23 in the Aleutians East Borough.
Although people can be tested more than once, each case reported by the state health department represents only one person.
The state’s data does not determine whether people who are positive for COVID-19 have symptoms. According to CDC estimates, more than half of the country’s infections are transmitted by asymptomatic people.