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The number of coronavirus cases reported in Utah Friday exceeded 200 for the first time in nearly a week, as the state also added more than 20 deaths.
The Utah Department of Health reported 244 new COVID-19 cases. The seven-day average case count remains under 200, just barely, at 194. Testing numbers also increased Friday. The state reported 7,419 new tests — 810 more than the day before.
The state also reported 4,539 coronavirus deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, 21 more than Thursday. Nine of the deaths occurred before Feb. 11.
The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 continues to fall, with 212 patients reported Friday. That’s 11 fewer than Thursday.
With seven new patients in the ICU because of COVID-19, the percent of ICU beds filled jumped to 71.4% since Thursday, still below the 85% threshold that healthcare workers have said is needed to have enough rooms, equipment and staff available to treat new patients. Of those 369 ICU patients, 13% are hospitalized because of COVID-19.
A UDOH analysis continues to show that booster shots significantly decrease Utahns’ chances of dying of COVID-19. Over the past four weeks:
• An unvaccinated person who contracts the virus is 8 times more likely to die than a fully vaccinated person, and 19.4 times more likely than a boosted person.
• An unvaccinated person who contracts the virus is 2.1 times more likely to be hospitalized than a fully vaccinated person, and 5.8 times more likely than a boosted person.
• An unvaccinated person is 1.9 times as likely to contract the virus than a fully vaccinated person, and 2.1 times more likely than a boosted person.
While state data show 61.3% of Utahns were fully vaccinated as of Wednesday, just 27.1% of all Utahns have received a booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Find where to get vaccinated at coronavirus.utah.gov/vaccine-distribution. Find where to get tested at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-covid-19-testing-locations.
Breakdown of updated figures
Vaccine doses administered in the past day/total doses administered • 2,252 / 4,972,374.
Number of Utahns fully vaccinated • 1,990,815 — 61.3% of Utah’s total population. That is an increase of 618 in the past day.
Cases reported during the past day • 244.
Vaccination status • Health officials do not immediately have or release the vaccination status of individuals who test positive, who are hospitalized or who die. They do calculate the overall risk ratios of these outcomes depending on vaccination status, which is listed above.
Tests reported in the past day • A total of 7,419 people were tested.
Deaths reported in the past day • 21. Nine of these people died before Feb. 11.
Salt Lake County reported five deaths: a woman age 45-64; two women and a man ages 65-84; and a man age 85 or older.
Four Davis County residents died: a woman age 45-64; a woman age 65-84; and a man and woman ages 85 or older.
Utah County also reported four resident deaths: A man age 64-85 and two women and a man ages 85 or older.
Two Washington County residents died: a man age 45-64 and a woman age 65-84.
Box Elder County also reported two deaths: a man age 65-84 and a woman age 85 or older.
Four counties reported a single death: a Cache County man age 65-84; a Sevier County woman age 65-84; a Wayne County man age 85 or older; a Wasatch County woman age 85 or older.
Hospitalizations reported in the past day • 212. That is 11 fewer than reported on Thursday. Of those currently hospitalized, 48 are in intensive care, up 7 from Thursday.
Percentage of positive tests • Under the state’s original method, the rate was 7.6% in the past day. That is higher than the seven-day average of 7.4%.
The state’s new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Wednesday’s rate was 3.3%, lower than the seven-day average of 4.7%.
[Read more: Utah is changing how it measures the rate of positive COVID-19 tests. Here’s what that means.]
Totals to date • 925,519 cases; 4,539 deaths; 33,647 hospitalizations; 9,309,730 tests administered.
