Arizona reports 32% weekly decline in new COVID cases, 15% drop in deaths

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PHOENIX – Arizona reported declines of 32% in new cases and 15% in additional deaths in the latest weekly update of the state’s COVID-19 dashboard.

The Arizona Department of Health Services added 6,549 cases and 382 deaths to its tally on Wednesday. That put the documented pandemic totals at 1,987,318 infections and 28,090 fatalities.

The state shifted from daily to weekly dashboard updates last week, when 9,647 cases and 449 deaths were added.

Wednesday’s case report represents a daily average of 935.6, the first time the seven-day average has been under 1,000 since July 2021.

Hospitalizations for the virus and the percent positivity for diagnostic testing also have plunged to levels not seen since last summer’s pandemic respite.

The daily average of hospital inpatients with COVID was 813 for the latest week, down from 1,108 the previous week.

The daily average for COVID ICU patients was 200 for the latest week, down from the previous week’s mark of 272.

The percent positivity for diagnostic testing for the week ending Saturday was 5%, the lowest since June 2021. The positivity rate has plummeted since reaching a pandemic high of 34% in mid-January at the peak of the omicron wave.

The weekly report format includes lags of four weeks for deaths and two weeks for hospitalizations so the data can be more complete before being released.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last week that only two of Arizona’s 15 counties — Yuma and La Paz — remained in the high risk category for COVID-19. The CDC updates its county COVID levels every Thursday.

COVID has been receding nationwide and in most of the world since a surge fueled by the highly contagious omicron variant ran its course.

The last statewide mask mandate in the U.S. will be lifted by March 26, Hawaii Gov. David Ige announced Tuesday.

Hawaii is the last to drop the pandemic safety measure, with indoor mask mandates in Oregon and Washington state expiring at 11:59 p.m. Friday.

The World Health Organization said Wednesday that new infections dropped by 5% worldwide in the last week, continuing a declining trend that started more than a month ago. Deaths were also down by 8% and have been falling globally for the last two weeks.

The biggest declines were seen in the Middle East and Africa, where cases dropped by 46% and 40%, respectively. Only the Western Pacific saw a rise in coronavirus cases, reporting a 46% increase.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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