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On Monday, the Utah Department of Health reported 4,607 new coronavirus cases in the past four days.
There were 1,479 new cases documented on Thursday, 1,316 on Friday, 1,221 on Saturday and 629 on Sunday — for an average of almost 1,152 per day.
The health department also confirmed 16 coronavirus deaths in the past four days. Six of those who died where under the age of 65 — three were between the ages of 25-44, and three were 45-64. The state’s COVID-19 death toll since the pandemic began is now 3,770.
(The department no longer releases COVID-19 numbers on weekends and holidays.)
The number of children getting vaccinated continues to climb: 92,434 children ages 5-11 have gotten at least one dose since they became eligible. That’s 25.3% of kids that age in Utah, according to the health department. And 59,073 of those kids have been fully vaccinated — 16.2% of that age group.
Intensive care units in the state remain near capacity. UDOH reported Monday that 90.4% of all ICU beds in Utah and 94.6% 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, 36.3% are being treated for COVID-19.
State health officials advised people Monday to avoid getting COVID-19 tests at the Cannon Health Building‘s south parking lot at 288 N. 1460 West. That site experienced long wait times Sunday and Monday, after the state-run testing sites were closed Saturday for Christmas.
Vaccine doses administered in the past four days/total doses administered • 12,061 / 4,504,855.
Number of Utahns fully vaccinated • 1,892,688 — 57.9% of Utah’s total population. That is an increase of 3,298 in the past four days.
Vaccination status: Health officials do not immediately have or release the vaccination status of individuals who test positive, are hospitalized, or die. They do calculate the overall risk ratios of these outcomes depending on vaccination status, which you can see below.
Cases reported in the past four days • 4,607.
Cases among school-age children • Kids in grades K-12 accounted for 544 of the new cases announced Monday — 11.8% of the total. There were 214 cases reported in children aged 5-10; 123 cases in children 11-13; and 207 cases in children 14-18.
Tests reported in the past four days • 33,425 people were tested for the first time. A total of 64,194 people were tested.
Deaths reported in the past four days • 16.
Five Salt Lake County residents died: A woman between the ages of 25-44, a man 45-64, and a man and two women 65-84.
There were also five deaths in Washington County: A man 25-44, a man 45-65, and three men 65-84.
Iron County reported two deaths: A man 65-84, and a woman 85-plus.
Three counties each reported a single death: A Sevier County man 45-64, a Utah County woman 25-44, and a Weber County man 65-84. The county where a woman 85-plus died was not reported.
Hospitalizations reported in the past day • 430. That is 28 fewer than reported on Thursday. Of those currently hospitalized, 171 are in intensive care — three fewer than reported on Thursday.
Percentage of positive tests • Under the state’s original method, the rate is 13.8% in the past four days. That is higher than the seven-day average of 10.9%.
The state’s new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Monday’s rate was 7.2%, lower than the seven-day average of 7.5%.
[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 18.1 times more likely to die of COVID-19 than vaccinated people, according to a Utah Department of Health analysis. The unvaccinated also were 10.1 times more likely to be hospitalized, and 3.5 times more likely to test positive for the coronavirus.
Totals to date • 628,310 cases; 3,770 deaths; 27,305 hospitalizations; 4,207,639 people tested.
