Arizona reports 3,621 new COVID-19 cases, 13 additional deaths Thursday

PHOENIX – Arizona health officials on Thursday reported 3,621 new COVID-19 cases and 13 additional deaths from the disease.

The latest documented totals are 998,164 infections and 18,661 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

With daily reports routinely over 2,000 in recent weeks, the state will likely eclipse 1 million total cases with Friday’s update.

The ADHS COVID-19 dashboard has been down since Wednesday, but the agency emailed Thursday’s update to media outlets.

On Wednesday, ADHS reported 3,234 new cases and 10 additional deaths but didn’t provide any other new data.

Our team is working to restore public access to the COVID-19 dashboards on the website, but they are currently unavailable. Thank you for your patience. Here is the summary data: pic.twitter.com/2KBulSXeKk

— AZ Dept of Health (@AZDHS) August 26, 2021

Hospitalizations related to the virus have nearly quadrupled since the state’s third COVID-19 wave started in early July. People who aren’t fully vaccinated now account for almost all of the serious illnesses and deaths.

The number of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients in the state’s hospitals was at 1,978 on Wednesday, with 487 COVID patients taking up ICU beds.

ADHS also reported that 3,989,615 people (55.5% of the state’s population, based on 7,189,020 residents) have received at least one dose of vaccine in Arizona and 3,501,119 people are fully vaccinated (48.7% of the population). The nationwide rates are 61% with at least one dose and 51.7% fully vaccinated, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The state health department’s daily updates present case and death 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 numbers posted each morning are reported electronically the previous evening by hospitals across the state.

Free federally authorized vaccines are widely available and highly effective in preventing illness from COVID-19, including the more contagious delta variant that now accounts for most of the new cases in the U.S.

For details about statewide vaccine availability, the ADHS website has a vaccine-finder page with locations and other information.

For information about metro Phoenix vaccine availability, Maricopa County Public Health has a locator page that lists pharmacies, government-run sites, health clinics and pop-up distribution events. Appointments may be required.

The minimum age to receive the Pfizer shot has been reduced to 12, but it’s still 18 for the other authorized versions, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson.

COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 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 where to get tested for COVID-19 can be found on the ADHS website.

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