Editor’s note: The Salt Lake Tribune is providing free access to critical stories about the coronavirus. Sign up for our Top Stories newsletter, sent to your inbox every morning. To support journalism like this, please donate or become a subscriber.
Nineteen more Utahns died of COVID-19 in the past week, as numbers rose almost across the board, according to the Utah Department of Health.
An increase in number of deaths, up from 10 last week. An increase in the number of cases. An increase in the average cases per day. And an increase in the percentage of people testing positive, to almost a third of those reported.
Hospitalizations were the exception. There was only one more patient hospitalized with the coronavirus this week compared to last week, and the number of patients in intensive care dropped.
The 19 people whose deaths were reported in the past week brought the state’s total death toll since the pandemic began to 4,834, according to the Utah Department of Health. One previously reported death — a Davis County man, between the ages of 45 and 64 — was taken off the list after further testing.
Another 7,406 cases of the coronavirus also were reported, 1,509 more than the previous week. Since the pandemic began, there have been almost 983,000 cases reported in the Beehive State.
In the past week, the state’s seven-day average of new cases climbed to 1,058, up from 967.7 the previous week.
State officials are looking less to new cases as a way to track COVID-19 spread, as fewer people are getting tested since the state shuttered most of its free testing facilities. In the past seven days, 23,682 people were tested, 285 fewer than the week before. The weekly rate of positive tests rose from 23.02% to 25.92%.
Instead, experts are looking at other metrics, like hospitalizations and emergency room visits, to judge the severity of coronavirus outbreaks. State data also shows an increase in emergency room visits.
Officials urge those who test positive or have COVID-19 symptoms to stay home to avoid infecting others. Isolation guidance is available at coronavirus.utah.gov/protect-yourself.
They also urge Utahns to get up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccines, which can prevent serious illness.
COVID-19 hospitalization rates
Data shows coronavirus patients made up 5.2% of emergency room visits in the past week, up from 4.61% the previous week.
Since last week, 267 more Utahns have been hospitalized with coronavirus, bringing the total to 35,872 patients hospitalized since the pandemic began. There were 216 COVID-19 patients in Utah hospitals as of Thursday, one more than a week ago.
The number of COVID-19 patients in ICUs decreased by 11, to 28.
The state reported 15,923 more Utahns received a COVID-19 vaccine since June 23, the last time it released data. Of those, 1,826 are now fully vaccinated, meaning they have had two doses of an mRNA series vaccine, like Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech, or one dose of the Janssen vaccine.
About 62.5% of Utahns — a total of 2,031,689 — are fully vaccinated, and 29.4% have received at least one booster shot, the data shows.
Breakdown of updated figures
Vaccine doses administered in the past week/total doses administered • 15,923 / 5,254,294.
Number of Utahns fully vaccinated • 2,031,689 — 62.5% of Utah’s total population.
Cases reported in the past week: 7,406.
Average cases per day reported in the past week • 1,058, up from 967.7 the previous week.
Tests reported from June 24-30 • 23,682.
Deaths reported in the past week • 19.
There were six deaths in Weber County: A man 65-84, and a man and four women 85-plus.
Four of the deaths were in Salt Lake County: A woman 45-64, a man 65-84, and a man and a woman 85-plus.
There were three deaths in Utah County, all women 65-84. And two Davis County residents died: A man 65-84, and a woman 85-plus.
The other deaths were a Cache County woman 65-84, a Tooele County man 85-plus, a Uintah County man 25-44, and a Wasatch County man 65-84.
Hospitalizations reported this week • 216 as of Thursday, a decline of one in the past week. There were 28 patients in intensive care, 11 fewer than reported a week ago.
Percentage of positive tests • Counting all test results, including repeated tests of the same person, this week’s rate was 25.92%. That is higher than the previous seven-day average of 23.02%.
Not counting individuals’ repeated test results, this week’s rate of people testing positive was 32.79%, higher than the previous seven-day average of 29.32%.
Totals to date • 982,895 cases; 4,834 deaths; 35,872 hospitalizations.
