Arizona reports 605 new COVID-19 cases, 44 additional deaths Wednesday
Mar 24, 2021, 8:25 AM | Updated: 2:53 pm
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
PHOENIX – Arizona public health officials on Wednesday reported 605 new coronavirus cases and 44 additional deaths from COVID-19.
The daily update came shortly after the age for COVID-19 vaccine eligibility dropped from 55 to as low as 16 in Arizona.
The state’s latest documented totals were 837,849 coronavirus infections and 16,842 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ COVID-19 dashboard.
Key metrics used to gauge the extent of the pandemic are at or near the lowest they’ve been since last fall, and nearly 3 million doses COVID-19 vaccine of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Arizona.
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The ADHS dashboard showed that 2,979,531 vaccine doses have been administered in the state, with 1,882,931 people (26.2% of the state’s population) having received at least one shot and 1,165,151 people fully vaccinated.
At 8 a.m. Wednesday, COVID-19 vaccine eligibility was extended to all adults at state-run sites and other points of dispensing in Maricopa County, with the age cutoff set at 16 for the Pfizer vaccine and 18 for Moderna or Johnson & Johnson shots.
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All available appointments at state-run sites were filled within 20 minutes, but about 80,000 more will be released Friday.
The number of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients in the state’s hospitals increased by three to 653 on Tuesday. The number of ICU beds used by COVID-19 patients decreased to 162, the second-fewest since Oct. 12.
The state 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 vaccine availability, the ADHS website has a vaccine-finder page with a map of locations and information about registration and eligibility.
For information about metro Phoenix vaccine availability, Maricopa County Public Health has an interactive map that lists pharmacies, government-run sites, health clinics and pop-up distribution events.
