Arizona hospitalization for COVID-19 continued about 11 weeks of general declines as the state reported 586 new COVID-19 cases and 23 new known deaths on Tuesday.
Arizona’s seven-day case rate per 100,000 people ranked 50th on Monday out of all states and territories, after it ranked first and second for most of January, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID data tracker software.
The state’s seven-day death rate per 100,000 people ranked eighth in the state as of Monday, In the CDC.
23 new deaths were reported in Arizona, bringing the number of known deaths from COVID-19 to 16,941 on Tuesday.
Arizona’s COVID-19 death rate since the pandemic began has reached 232 deaths per 100,000 people as of Monday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, placing it sixth in the country in the state’s ranking that separates New York City from New York state.
The overall death and injury rates for COVID-19 in Arizona since January 21, 2020 remain among the worst in the country.
Follow coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic by Republic and USA TODAY Network reporters here.
1:20 pm Tuesday: Navajo Nation identifies the first confirmed case of a UK variant
Navajo Nation identified the UK’s first confirmed case of COVID-19 on Tuesday, an individual who had been vaccinated against the disease nearly a month ago.
The positive case has been confirmed from a COVID-19 test sample taken in the western part of Navajo Nation, officials said during a virtual town hall meeting on Tuesday.
“We should not be alarmed, but we must be informed of this new development,” Jonathan Nese, president of the Navajo Nation, said in a press release.
Nez said: “There is still a lot to learn about this particular alternative, but the evidence so far indicates that the British variant is more contagious and in some cases more severe.” “The UK variant has been detected in all 50 states, and now we have a confirmed case here at Navajo Nation.”
Navajo Health Department officials said a person who tested positive for the British variant had received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine over a month’s period before they tested positive.
Officials said the person was hospitalized but is now recovering at home.
“In this particular case, the severity of infection for this individual may have been reduced by the vaccine that the person received weeks earlier,” said Jill Jim, executive director of the Navajo Health Department, in a press release.
She added: “As we said before, vaccinations do not guarantee that a person will not develop COVID-19 and the variants, so it is extremely important to continue to take all precautions even after you are fully vaccinated.”
Contact tracing was performed and no other outbreak was identified other than an individual who tested positive for the variant, according to health officials.
The Navajo Epidemiology Center is coordinating with states and other testing facilities to sequence variant samples.
“We don’t want to cause panic, but we do want to reinforce the need to take all precautions by limiting travel, getting tested if symptoms appear, wearing a mask or two, avoiding medium to large personal gatherings, and practicing social distancing,” said Nez.
Navajo Nation Vice President, Myron Lizer said, “Personal responsibility is the key to curbing the spread of the UK variable.”
He added: “We know how to prevent the spread of the virus, but we must all do our part.”
– Shundien jeweler of silver
12 noon Tuesday: Volunteers wanted for Tuesday. Transformations at State Farm
More than half of the volunteer shifts needed for a vaccine at State Farm Tuesday night were vacant at midday Volunteer interest decreased Since expanding vaccine eligibility.
Volunteers at state-run vaccination sites can get their first shot immediately after a six or eight hour shift, but that incentive is now less tempting because everyone 16 years and older became eligible to participate in the vaccine last week.
The HandsOn Greater Phoenix site, which coordinates volunteer registrations with Arizona State University, has seen an eloquent interest, compared starkly to what happened earlier this year when the site was disrupted by an overabundance of enthusiastic volunteers.
From 1:30 to 10 p.m. Tuesday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, 57 of the 145 volunteer places remained vacant as of noon. In the evening from 9:30 p.m. Tuesday to 6 a.m. Wednesday, 83 of the 145 places remained open.
A large number of volunteer slots are vacant for the rest of the week at State Farm. Shifts at State Farm are currently eight hours. The state said it could turn into salaried employees rather than volunteers if needed.
HandsOn CEO Ronda Oliver said: “The volunteers and staff on the ground have to step up, take no breaks, and have risen to the occasion.” “But we really like to have the influx of volunteers that we’ve enjoyed since the beginning of February … if we could all get together for another two months and get that done, that would be great.”
Interested volunteers can find more information and subscribe handsonphoenix.org/vaccinatestate48.
Alison Steinbach
3:15 pm: Arizona ignores 228 doses of Pfizer vaccine due to no-show
State health officials confirmed on Monday that more than 200 doses of the Pfizer vaccine ended up in the trash on March 18.
An extraordinary number of no-shows and inability to contact additional patients in the middle of the night resulted in 228 doses being expired, Arizona Department of Health Services spokesperson Steve Elliott wrote in an email, confirming the number. I mentioned it first Posted by Phoenix New Times.
Elliott said the doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were lost between midnight and dawn on March 18 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale. He said it was the largest number of vaccines dumped at any state-run vaccine site.
On March 22, after four days of wasting doses, the state opened vaccine eligibility to all Arizona residents 16 years of age and over. Before March 22, only those aged 55 and over were allowed to be vaccinated at state-run sites.
“Arizona’s move to open vaccination for everyone 16 years of age or older at state-run sites will help reduce the number of no-shows and make sure that all available appointments are taken,” Elliott wrote.
“ADHS considers it unacceptable if a single usable dose of vaccine is not used as intended. Staff and partners immediately use this situation as a case study to improve communication and procedures among clinical workers who register patients and administer the vaccine in the parking lot and pharmacy staff. By defrosting and taking the potions inside the stadium. “
Going forward, communication from the medical staff to the on-site pharmacy will adjust the number of doses dissolved and withdrawn into the syringes, while the medical staff will provide additional doses to others in the vehicles to reduce the chance of wastage, he wrote.
The state-run State Farm Stadium has managed nearly 600,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine since opening January 11. State officials say the only other case involving an unused vaccine occurred on March 3, when the State Farm Stadium reported that 12 usable doses had expired. .
“These are the only reports ADHS has received of an expired vaccine at state-run sites,” Elliott writes.
Stephanie Innes and Alison Steinbach
12 noon Monday: Arizonans are playing a big role in studying CDC vaccine efficacy
Arizonans have played a key role in a promising new study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention into the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in the real world, beyond clinical trials.
Newly released CDC report Tracking vaccine efficacy in nearly 4,000 healthcare workers, first responders, and other essential workers for 13 weeks from December to March.
About half of these individuals were in Arizona – 1,199 people in Tucson, 555 in Phoenix and 320 elsewhere in the state. The University of Arizona Mill and the Enid Zuckerman School of Public Health are credited for the Arizona efforts.
The mRNA vaccine (Pfizer and Moderna) was found to be 90% effective against COVID-19 infection starting 2 weeks after the second dose, and 80% effective with partial immunization for two weeks after the first dose but before the second dose. The results were similar to those in clinical trials.
“Current vaccination efforts are leading to significant preventive benefits among working-age adults,” the report said.
The conclusion of the study was that approved vaccines are effective in preventing COVID-19 infection “in real world conditions” and that vaccines are recommended for every eligible person.
“These new data on the effectiveness of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are very encouraging, and they show just how important it is to vaccinate people. Continuing our studies has become more important as the spread of COVID-19 variants as the transmissibility increases globally,” a statement from Dr. Jeff Burgess, Associate Dean for Research and Professor at Mill and Enid Zuckerman School of Public Health and lead investigator on the Arizona Health Care, Emergency Response and Other Key Worker Surveillance (AZ HEROES) study whose data were entered in the CDC report.
– Alison Steinbach
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