Arizona reports 316 new coronavirus cases, 1 additional 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 Monday, Oct. 5.

PHOENIX – Arizona health authorities reported 316 new coronavirus cases and one additional death on Monday morning.

That put the state’s documented totals at 221,070 COVID-19 infections and 5,707 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Coming out of the weekend, Monday’s COVID-19 reports have generally seen lower numbers than other days of the week.

It was the second consecutive day with a single death reported.

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 was 567 on Sunday, up from the previous day but in the range it’s been for the past week.

The number of COVID-19 patients in ICU beds has been slowly increasing in recent days and was up to 134 on Sunday, the most since Sept. 15. On Sept. 22, it was a pandemic-low 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 has been at 4% for five consecutive weeks, with 53,716 tests recorded last 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 502.43 through Sunday, 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 for the second consecutive day, the lowest it’s been since May 2.

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

• Tourist sites on the Navajo Nation, including the Four Corners Monument, will be closed through at least the rest of the year because of rise in coronavirus cases.
• The University of Arizona announced it plans to introduce more in-person classes starting next week if coronavirus cases continue to decline.
• President Donald Trump said he’s leaving the military hospital where he has been treated for COVID-19 and will continue his recovery at the White House.
• Democratic Arizona state Rep. Lorenzo Sierra has been hospitalized after testing positive for coronavirus
• Maricopa County is providing hotel space for people who don’t have a place to isolate after being diagnosed with coronavirus.
• The head of emergencies at the World Health Organization said its “best estimates” indicate that roughly 1 in 10 people worldwide may have been infected by the coronavirus — more than 20 times the number of confirmed cases — and warned of a difficult period ahead
• Globally, there were more than 35.2 million COVID-19 cases and 1.03 million deaths as of Monday morning, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The figures for the U.S. were around 7.42 million cases and 209,000 deaths.

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