According to preliminary state data, residents of Anchorage and Fairbanks were involved in the deaths.
A total of 227 Alaskans and one non-resident with COVID-19 have died since the pandemic reached the state in March. Alaska’s per capita mortality rate is among the lowest in the country, although the state’s size and vulnerable health care system make national comparisons difficult.
By Thursday, 65 people with COVID-19 had been hospitalized in the Alaska area, and according to the state health department, it is suspected that ten more people had the virus. Hospitalizations have declined sharply since the high numbers were reported in November and early December.
The state’s daily number of cases has also dropped significantly in recent weeks, but the alert level across the country is still high.
Vaccines reached Alaska in mid-December. According to the latest update on Wednesday, 35,383 people received their first vaccine, with 7,965 receiving both doses to make the vaccine fully effective, according to the state panel for monitoring vaccinations.
Government officials said this week the state has awarded the vaccine received for December and January, but there are still appointments and major clinics taking place in the coming days and weeks.
For more information, the public can visit covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322 and leave a message. According to a survey, calls will be returned in the order within 48 hours, but users report longer delays.
Of the 333 new cases reported among Alaska residents Thursday, there were 110 in Anchorage plus three in Chugiak, 12 in Eagle River and two in Girdwood; 42 in Fairbanks and seven in the North Pole; two in Big Lake, 23 in Palmer and 28 in Wasilla; 12 in Bethel; one in Homer, two in Kenai, five in Soldotna, and two in Sterling; ses in Juneau; three in Kodiak; three in Unalaska; two in Nome; two in Utqiagvik; one in Ketchikan; one in Petersburg; one in Cordova; and one in Valdez.
Among the communities of less than 1,000 people not named for privacy, there were 21 in the North Slope City; 12 in the Bethel Census Area; nine in the Kusilvak census area; three in the Fairbanks North Star Borough; three in the Yukon-Koyukuk census area; two each on the northern and southern Kenai Peninsula; two in the Copper River Census Area; two in the Nome census area; two in the Northwest North Pole area; one in Bristol Bay plus neighborhoods in the lake and peninsula; and one in the town of Kodiak Island.
Eight cases were reported Thursday among non-residents, including three in Anchorage and five in unknown regions of the state.
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.
The positive percentage of the global test on Thursday was 3.68% above an average of seven days. Health officials say anything above 5% could indicate inadequate testing and widespread community transmission. The state peaked at more than 9% in November.