Arizona reports 4,444 new coronavirus cases, 108 more deaths

Dec 9, 2020, 8:27 AM | Updated: 5:59 pm

(Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)

This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for Dec. 9, 2020.

PHOENIX – Arizona health authorities on Wednesday reported 4,444 new coronavirus cases with 108 additional deaths, pushing the state’s pandemic fatality count over 7,000.

It was the first time with more than 100 deaths reported in a day since Aug. 26 and the highest death report since Aug. 12.

The state’s documented totals increased to 382,601 COVID-19 infections and 7,081 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Overall, multiple COVID-19 metrics in Arizona are at or approaching the highest they’ve been since the start of the pandemic.

The number of Arizona’s confirmed or suspected COVID-19 hospital inpatients was 3,287 on Tuesday. That’s a 43% increase since Thanksgiving, when it was 2,301, and the most since July 16.

The number of COVID-19 inpatients peaked July 13 at 3,517 and fell afterward as low as 468 on Sept. 27.

The number of Arizona’s confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients in ICU beds was 766 on Tuesday. That’s a 44% increase since Thanksgiving, when it was 532, and the most since July 28.

The number of COVID-19 patients in ICU beds peaked July 13 at 970 and fell afterward as low as 114 on Sept. 22.

Statewide, 38% of all inpatient beds and 44% of all ICU beds were filled with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients on Tuesday, levels last seen in July.

Overall, inpatient beds were 90% filled and ICU beds were 90% filled.

Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, has reached its highest level in nearly five months.

The positivity rate was 18% for the 153,807 tests reported from last week, which would be the highest since it was 19% for the week starting July 5. It was 16% for the 11,472 tests recorded so far this week.

The positivity rate peaked at 21% at the end of June and was down to 4% as recently as early October.

Official positivity 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 rolling seven-day average for the health department’s newly reported cases was at 5,859.71 for Tuesday, according to tracking by The Associated Press, setting a record for the sixth consecutive day.

During the first wave of the pandemic in Arizona, when testing was less available than it is now, the seven-day case average peaked at 3,844 on July 6 and afterward fell as low as 373.14 on Sept. 12.

The seven-day average of newly reported deaths has been surging recently, although it has decreased each of the last two days. It was at 40.86 for Tuesday, a 55% increase since Thanksgiving.

The seven-day death average peaked July 30 at 94 and fell afterward as low as 5.57 on Oct. 14.

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 is reported electronically the previous evening by 100 hospitals across the state, as required under executive order.

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.

Information about testing locations can be found on the Arizona Department of Health Services website.

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

The Navajo Nation reported 191 new coronavirus cases and five additional deaths, bringing the documented totals to 18,575 infections and 693 fatalities.
The Pima County Health Department issued a health advisory on Wednesday as hospitals in the county reached capacity as coronavirus cases continue to surge.
Gov. Doug Ducey announced Wednesday that Arizona is expected to receive more than 383,000 doses of the coronavirus vaccine by the end of December.
U.S. Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly of Arizona announced on Wednesday that $13 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds is coming to the state’s health department.
This week’s record coronavirus case numbers in Arizona are a sign of the post-Thanksgiving surge experts warned about, Dr. Cara Christ, the state’s health director, told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show.
The city of Tempe said it awarded $1.2 million in grants last week to help small businesses survive the COVID-19 pandemic and retain or increase staffing.
The city of Peoria is closing certain city facilities and activities in response a surge of coronavirus cases around the state.
The Arizona Theatre Company announced it is postponing its 54th season until late 2021 due to recent coronavirus pandemic surges in the state.
Globally, there were about 68.39 million COVID-19 cases and 1.56 million deaths as of Wednesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University research. The figures for the U.S. were around 15.17 million cases and 286,000 deaths.