Arizona reports 939 new COVID-19 cases, 121 more deaths Thursday
Feb 25, 2021, 8:24 AM | Updated: Feb 26, 2021, 7:51 am
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for Feb. 25, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona public health officials on Thursday reported 939 new coronavirus cases, the fewest in a day since November, and 121 additional deaths from COVID-19.
The state’s documented totals were updated to 812,907 coronavirus infections and 15,814 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ COVID-19 dashboard.
The last time the daily update had fewer than 1,000 new cases was when 820 were reported on Nov. 30, 2020.
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After spiking to record highs in the first part of January, case and hospitalization numbers have fallen to pre-Thanksgiving levels in Arizona.
The number of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients in the state’s hospitals decreased to 1,385 on Wednesday, the fewest since Nov. 12. The number of ICU beds used by COVID-19 patients declined to 415, the fewest since Nov. 17.
Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, has been trending downward since the start of the year.
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Of the 22,942 people tested so far this week, 8% received a positive result, which would be the lowest mark since October. The percent positivity was 9% each of the two previous weeks.
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 has plateaued over the last week and was 1,559 for Wednesday, according to tracking by The Associated Press.
The seven-day average of newly reported deaths was 105.5 for Wednesday.
In Wednesday’s update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona was second in the nation for COVID-19 deaths per capita over the last seven days and 14th in cases. Arizona led the U.S. in both categories at times in January.
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 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 information about statewide vaccine availability, the ADHS website has a vaccine-finder page with a map of locations and information about registration.
Below are Thursday’s latest developments about the coronavirus pandemic from around the state, country and world:
- The Navajo Nation reported 45 new coronavirus cases and nine additional deaths, bringing the documented totals to 29,655 infections – including eight delayed reported cases – and 1,161 fatalities.
- The Arizona Department of Health Services reported that 1,603,558 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the state, a day-to-day increase of 50,647, with 1,137,507 people having received at least one shot.
- Globally, there were about 112.67 million COVID-19 cases and 2.5 million deaths as of Thursday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University research. The figures for the U.S. were around 28.34 million cases and 506,000 deaths.
