Arizona reports 915 new coronavirus cases, 23 additional deaths

Aug 18, 2020, 8:22 AM | Updated: 9:52 pm

(Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

This is a regularly updated story with the latest information, news and updates about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for Tuesday, Aug. 18.

PHOENIX – Arizona health authorities reported 915 new coronavirus cases and 23 additional deaths on Tuesday morning.

That put the state’s documented totals at 194,920 COVID-19 infections and 4,529 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Multiple key metrics about the severity of Arizona’s pandemic, including coronavirus-related hospitalizations, are at or near the lowest they’ve been in a month or more.

The rolling seven-day average for newly reported cases declined Monday to 926, the lowest seen since June 6, according to tracking by The Associated Press.

The seven-day average of newly reported deaths dropped slightly to 50.29, the second-lowest mark since July 11.

The seven-day average for new cases peaked July 6 at 3,844, and the stat for deaths reached a high of 94 on July 30.

The spread of coronavirus in Arizona has been slowing in the month-plus since the implementation of face mask requirements by local governments in many areas — including all of Maricopa County — and statewide executive orders to close businesses such as bars and gyms and to restrict restaurant occupancy.

Those moves were made after the state became a global hot spot for the coronavirus, which has no impact on some people and is seriously debilitating or fatal for others. Infected people without symptoms – which include but are not limited to cough, fever and difficulty breathing — are capable of spreading the virus.

Arizona’s weekly positive rate for COVID-19 diagnostic tests, which shows how much the virus is spreading, has declined for six consecutive weeks.

For the 53,154 samples taken last week that have been processed and recorded, the positive rate is 6%. If that rate holds up, it would be the lowest since the week starting May 17.

Weekly rates are based on when the samples are taken, not when they are reported, so the percentage for recent weeks can fluctuate as labs get caught up on testing and the results are documented by the state.

The Arizona health department’s daily reports present case, death and testing data after the state receives statistics and confirms them, which can lag by several days or more. They don’t represent the actual activity over the past 24 hours.

The hospital data posted each morning, however, is reported the previous evening by the hospitals and shows coronavirus-related hospitalizations at their lowest points since early June.

The number of Arizona’s confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients fell to 1,167 on Monday, the fewest since June 3.

The number of COVID-19 patients in ICU beds dipped by three overnight to 427, the second-fewest since June 9.

COVID-19 inpatients peaked at 3,517 on July 13, and COVID-19 patients in ICU beds topped out at 970 the same day.

Overall, inpatient beds were 81% full on Monday, 1 point lower than the previous day. The inpatient occupancy rate peaked at 88% on July 9-10.

The ICU occupancy rate was 80% for the third consecutive day. It topped out at 91% on July 7.

Hospital bed data on the health department website does not include surge beds that have not been activated but can potentially increase capacity.

Below are Tuesday’s latest developments about the coronavirus pandemic from around the state, country and world:

Senate Republican leaders are preparing a slimmed-down virus relief package of roughly $500 billion that will include extended payments for unemployed people and smaller businesses, a GOP senator said Tuesday.
Mountainside Fitness CEO Tom Hatten vowed to open his metro Phoenix gym chain in the next week.
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez reported 17 new COVID-19 cases and four additional virus-related deaths among the Navajo Nation.
To distribute federal CARES Act aid more quickly, Maricopa County is boosting grants from $10,000 to $25,000 per organization.
A mobile coronavirus testing van was unveiled by the city of Phoenix — the first of its kind in Arizona.
There were more than 21.9 million coronavirus cases and 775,000 deaths reported globally as of Tuesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University. For the U.S., there were more than 5.4 million cases and 170,000 deaths.

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