Arizona reports 2,426 new COVID-19 cases, 172 more deaths Friday
Feb 12, 2021, 8:26 AM | Updated: 6:55 pm
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for Feb. 12, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials on Friday reported 2,426 new coronavirus cases and 172 additional deaths from COVID-19.
The state’s documented totals moved to 793,532 infections and 14,834 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ COVID-19 dashboard.
The virus remains widespread across the state, although the surge that made Arizona the nation’s hot spot last month is receding, mirroring a trend seen across the nation.
COVID-19 hospitalizations and daily case averages are now lower than they were at the July peak of the state’s first wave, but the death pace remains higher.
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The number of Arizona’s confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients fell to 2,396 on Thursday, the fewest since Nov. 27. The number of ICU beds used by COVID-19 patients dipped to 705, the fewest since Dec. 4.
Statewide, COVID-19 patients took up 28% of all inpatient beds and 39% of all ICU beds on Thursday. Overall, inpatient beds were at 90% of capacity and ICU beds at 87%.
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Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, has declined every week since it peaked at 24% for the week starting Dec. 27.
Of the 40,925 people tested so far this week, 9% received a positive result. The percent positivity was 12% for 109,361 people tested last week.
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 seven-day average for the state health department’s newly reported coronavirus cases was 2,758.57 for Thursday, according to tracking by The Associated Press, the second-lowest mark since Nov. 18.
The seven-day average of newly reported deaths hasn’t changed much since the start of February and was 130 for Thursday.
In Thursday’s update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona ranked fourth in the nation for COVID-19 deaths per capita over the last seven days and seventh in cases.
The Arizona health department’s daily updates 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.
Diagnostic testing is available at hundreds of locations across Arizona and should be sought out by anybody with symptoms or who may have been exposed to an infected person. Information about locations, schedules and registration can be found on the Department of Health Services website.
For more information about statewide vaccine availability, the ADHS website has a vaccine-finder page with a map of locations and information about registration.
Below are Friday’s latest developments about the coronavirus pandemic from around the state, country and world:
- The Navajo Nation reported 66 new coronavirus cases and 6 additional deaths, bringing the documented totals to 29,167 infections – including three delayed cases – and 1,103 fatalities.
- The Phoenix Union High School District said its winter sports season, delayed out of precaution during the COVID-19 pandemic, has been canceled.
- Democratic U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona doesn’t think a provision to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 belongs in the next COVID relief package.
- The Arizona Department of Health Services reported that 1,096,126 of the state’s 1,220,400 allocated COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered, an increase of more than 50,000 from the previous day.
- An Arizona State University professor says smokers are at high risk for more serious effects from COVID-19 due to damage already done to the lungs from smoking.
- President Joe Biden said the U.S. will have enough supply of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of the summer to inoculate 300 million Americans.
- Globally, there were about 107.9 million COVID-19 cases and 2.37 million deaths as of Friday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University research. The figures for the U.S. were around 27.39 million cases and 475,000 deaths.
