Arizona reports 355 new coronavirus cases, 1 more death

This is a regularly updated story with the latest information, news and updates about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for Sunday, Oct. 4.

PHOENIX – Arizona health authorities reported 355 new coronavirus cases and one additional death on Sunday morning.

That put the state’s documented totals at 220,754 COVID-19 infections and 5,706 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Multiple key metrics about the severity of Arizona’s pandemic are near the lowest they’ve been in months.

The number of Arizona’s confirmed or suspected COVID-19 hospital inpatients fell to 545 on Saturday, down 60 from 605 on Friday.

The number of COVID-19 patients in ICU beds was 133 on Saturday, the most since Sept. 17 but not much above the pandemic-low mark of 114.

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

Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing is on pace to be at 4% for the fifth consecutive week, with 45,369 tests recorded so far this week.

The positivity rate, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, had been as high as 20% at the end of June.

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 hospitalization data posted each morning, however, is reported the previous evening by the hospitals.

The rolling seven-day average for the state health department’s newly reported cases was 510.43 through Saturday, according to tracking by The Associated Press, and has been relatively stable for the past week.

The seven-day average of newly reported deaths was at 11.86 through Saturday, the third time under 17 since June 10.

The seven-day case average peaked at 3,844 on July 6, and the death average topped out at 94 on July 30.

As cases skyrocketed in June, local governments in many parts of Arizona — including all of Maricopa County — implemented face mask requirements, and Gov. Doug Ducey issued statewide executive orders to close certain businesses and restrict restaurant occupancy.

The spread of COVID-19 soon slowed and has been steadily falling since the peak of the pandemic. Much of the state has hit benchmarks established by the health department that allow certain businesses to reopen under capacity restrictions and other regulations.

COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, 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.

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