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Utah reports 13 deaths, more than 2,500 coronavirus cases in the past 3 days

The rolling seven-day average of new cases stands at 978, the lowest it’s been since Aug. 16.

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On Monday, the Utah Department of Health reported 2,522 new coronavirus cases in the past three days. There were 910 new cases documented on Friday, 863 on Saturday and 749 on Sunday for an average of almost 841 per day.

After further analysis, the Health Department also reported Monday that 22 cases previously included in the statewide total were removed. It’s unclear why the cases were initially counted, but a Health Department official said that in the past, such corrected discrepancies have been due to counting errors, rechecking tests, or both.

The rolling seven-day average of new cases stands at 978, the lowest it’s been since Aug. 16.

The Health Department also reported 13 more COVID-19 deaths in the past three days. Six were people under the age of 65 — one between the ages of 25-44, and five who were 45-64. So far this month, the state has reported 129 deaths.

The number of children getting vaccinated continues to climb: 88,027 children ages 5-11 have gotten at least one dose since they became eligible. That’s 24.1% of kids that age in Utah, according to the Health Department. And 52,947 of those kids have been fully vaccinated — 14.5% of that age group.

Intensive care units in the state remain near capacity. UDOH reported Friday that 94.8% of all ICU beds in Utah and 98.9% of ICU beds in larger medical centers in the state are occupied. (Hospitals consider any figure over 85% to be functionally full.) Of all ICU patients, 39.3% are being treated for COVID-19.

Vaccine doses administered in the past three days/total doses administered • 30,838 / 4,434,660.

Number of Utahns fully vaccinated • 1,880,852 — 57.5% of Utah’s total population. That is an increase of 5,434 in the past three days.

Cases reported in the past three days • 2,522.

Cases among school-age children • Kids in grades K-12 accounted for 376 of the new cases announced Monday — 14.9% of the total. There were 171 cases reported in children aged 5-10; 79 cases in children 11-13; and 126 cases in children 14-18.

Tests reported in past three days • 24,470 people were tested for the first time. A total of 47,475 people were tested.

Deaths reported in past three days • 13.

There were fourth deaths in Utah County — a man and a woman between the ages of 65-84, and two men 85 or older. Washington County reported three deaths — two men 45-64, and a man 65-84.

There were two deaths in Salt Lake County — a man 25-44, and a man 45-64. There also were two deaths in Weber County — a man 45-64, and a woman 85 or older.

Other deaths were a man 45-64 in Cache County, and a man 85 or older in Uintah County.

Hospitalizations reported in the past three days • 453. That is 58 fewer than reported on Friday. Of those currently hospitalized, 192 are in intensive care, four fewer than reported on Friday.

Percentage of positive tests • Under the state’s original method, the rate is 10.3% in the past three days. That is lower than the seven-day average of 12.3%.

The state’s new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Monday’s rate was 5.3%, lower than the seven-day average of 8.5%.

[Read more: Utah is changing how it measures the rate of positive COVID-19 tests. Here’s what that means.]

Risk ratios • In the past four weeks, unvaccinated Utahns were 14.7 times more likely to die of COVID-19 than vaccinated people, according to a Utah Department of Health analysis. The unvaccinated also were 9.9 times more likely to be hospitalized, and 3.7 times more likely to test positive for the coronavirus.

Totals to date • 620,197 cases; 3,717 deaths; 27,035 hospitalizations; 4,146,047 people tested.