COVID Surge Continues As 4,597 More Utahns Test Positive; 29 More Deaths Reported
Jan 7, 2021, 1:09 PM | Updated: 1:26 pm
FILE (Photo by Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)
(Photo by Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Utah health officials reported the post-holiday COVID surge is continuing, with 4,597 more of the state’s residents testing positive.
Twenty-nine more Utahns have lost their lives because of the virus. The Utah Department of Health noted that 17 of the deaths that were reported Thursday occurred before Dec. 20, 2020.
Currently, 537 people are hospitalized with COVID-19.
This article is being updated. For more information, visit coronavirus.utah.gov.
Testing
UDOH reports 1,790,189 Utahns have been tested so far. That’s an increase of 15,554 people tested from yesterday.
Of those, a total of 297,317 people have tested positive for COVID-19, which is an increase of 4,597 cases from Wednesday’s report.
The rolling seven-day average for positive tests is 2,952 per day. The rolling seven-day average for percent of positive laboratory tests is 32.71%.
Utah Department of Health
Hospitalizations
There are 537 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19, and 187 of those people are in intensive care units. Another 57 people are hospitalized with suspected cases of COVID-19.
Utah’s ICU beds are currently 87% full, which is higher than the state’s threshold for quality ICU care due to the number of caregivers available.
The intensive care units in the state’s referral centers are also approximately 87% full.
Referral Centers are the 16 hospitals in Utah with the capability to provide the best care for patients with COVID-19. Because most patients are transferred to these facilities, their utilization is the best reflection of the true hospital capacity in Utah when looking at ICU beds.
Utah Department of Health
Deaths
Health officials reported 29 people had died as a direct result of COVID-19. According to UDOH, 17 of those Utahns died prior to Dec. 20.
“Because the Office of the Medical Examiner takes great care to ensure cases reported as COVID deaths are actually due to COVID; through medical records review and sometimes an autopsy, there can be a delay in final determinations,” according to a statement from UDOH.
To date, 1,359 of the state’s residents have been killed by COVID-19.
The following individuals’ deaths were reported Thursday:
- Male, between 45-64, Cache County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, older than 85, Davis County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, between 65-84, Davis County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, between 65-84, Davis County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Davis County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Davis County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, between 25-44, Iron County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Millard County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Male, between 45-64, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, older than 85, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, older than 85, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Utah County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Female, older than 85, Wasatch County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, older than 85, Washington County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Washington County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, older than 85, Washington County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Male, between 45-64, Weber County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, between 65-84, Weber County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Weber County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
- Male, older than 85, Weber County resident, long-term care facility resident
Vaccinations
There have been 157,925 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine shipped to Utah. So far, 67,063 people have received their first dose of the vaccine, and 967 have received both doses and are now fully inoculated.
Utah Department of Health
For more information, visit coronavirus.utah.gov.
