Arizona reports 830 new COVID-19 cases, 78 more deaths Wednesday
Mar 10, 2021, 8:27 AM | Updated: Mar 11, 2021, 7:55 am
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for March 10, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona public health officials on Wednesday reported 830 new coronavirus cases and 78 additional deaths from COVID-19.
The daily case update has now remained below 1,000 for three consecutive days for the first time since an Oct. 21-24 stretch. The deaths were the first reported since Sunday and eclipsed the combined total from the previous four days.
The state’s documented totals were updated to 828,630 coronavirus infections and 16,404 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ COVID-19 dashboard.
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Key state metrics used to gauge the severity of the pandemic continue to improve and are the lowest they’ve been in months, and more than 20% of Arizona’s population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
The ADHS dashboard showed that 2,251,363 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the state, a day-over-day increase of 53,987, with 1,442,915 people (20.1% of the state’s population) having received at least one shot.
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The number of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients in the state’s hospitals decreased to 868 on Tuesday, the fewest since Oct. 26. The number of ICU beds used by COVID-19 patients dipped to 251, the fewest since Nov. 6.
Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, reached a five-month low.
Of the 77,104 people tested last week, 5% received a positive result, the lowest percent positivity since early October. The rate through 9,560 people this week was 6%.
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 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 details about statewide COVID-19 vaccine availability, the ADHS website has a vaccine-finder page with a map of locations and information about registration and eligibility.
Below are Wednesday’s latest developments about the coronavirus pandemic from around the state, country and world:
- The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Senate’s version of the $1.9 trillion COVID relief package without a Republican vote and sent the bill, which includes $1,400 checks for most Americans, to President Joe Biden.
- The Navajo Nation reported 13 new coronavirus cases and one additional death, bringing the documented totals to 29,900 infections and 1,205 fatalities.
- Arizona health experts have mixed reactions to new guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for people fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
- Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey and his top health official said they are sorry people have struggled to make a vaccine appointment and they are working to make it as easy as possible.
- The Navajo Nation on Wednesday announced plans for a “soft reopening” for businesses as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations decline and vaccinations increase.
- Globally, there were about 117.69 million COVID-19 cases and 2.61 million deaths as of Wednesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University research. The figures for the U.S. were around 29.1 million cases and 527,000 deaths.
