A Fairbanks man in his thirties recently died of COVID-19, according to the health officials’ report on Saturday. This brings the number of COVID-19-related deaths in the state to 223.
Alaska reported 378 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, including 51 in Fairbanks, 13 in the North Pole and eight elsewhere in the Fairbanks North Star Borough, according to data from the State Department of Health and Human Services.
Anchorage saw 119 new cases, Wasilla saw 39, Palmer 14 and Kenai 11.
“You can see that it has continued to decline in general,” said Dr. Anne Zink, chief medical officer of the state, said in her Friday video update. “Unfortunately, however, we are starting to see a bit of plateau, and in some areas we are starting to see an increase in some cases.”
In the Fairbanks North Star Borough, the test positivity rate over the past seven days is 6.44%, indicating widespread community transfer.
To help slow down the virus, health officials encourage the public to wear masks, keep their distance and avoid gatherings larger than their immediate circle.
In terms of COVID-19 tests, in addition to recommending those experiencing symptoms and travelers to be tested, officials suggest supervising – regularly fortnightly or weekly – for people who are regularly with people outside their household, at the work or otherwise interact.
New COVID-19 variant
A new, more transmissible variant found in other states has not been reported in Alaska, but health officials are keeping a close eye on the situation.
The mutated virus does not lead to serious diseases, but because of its highly transmissible nature, more people are likely to contract it, and as a result, more people may die, state epidemiologist Joe McLaughlin told a news conference Thursday.
The current COVID-19 vaccines are effective against the new variant of the virus, but at some point the virus can mutate to the point where we need an updated vaccine, McLaughlin explained.
So far, at least 25,085 Alaskans have been vaccinated.
Contact author Alena Naiden at 459-7587. Follow her at twitter.com/FDNMlocal.