Utah reports 2,219 COVID-19 cases, 13 additional deaths
Nov 17, 2021, 2:14 PM | Updated: 2:27 pm
(Photo by Jon Cherry/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Department of Health on Wednesday said 13 more Utahns have died due to COVID-19 and 2,219 residents have tested positive for the virus.
Of those cases, 495 (22.31%) were in school-aged children.
- 278 cases in children ages 5-10
- 105 cases in children ages 11-13
- 112 cases in children ages 14-18
Currently, 557 Utahns are hospitalized due to the virus and the ICUs at Utah’s 16 referral center hospitals, where the majority of COVID-19 patients are treated, are 98.4% full — above the state’s “functionally full” threshold of 85%.
No one's taken the brunt of the pandemic like health care workers, and the unrelenting cases of COVID-19 have brought many to their breaking point. #KSLTV #YourLifeYourHealth with @Intermountainhttps://t.co/9bRtCHhNoh
— KSL 5 TV (@KSL5TV) September 9, 2021
The rolling seven-day average for positive tests was 1,674 — up from 1,634 on Monday and 1,650 last week.
An additional 13,338 vaccine doses have been administered since yesterday, bringing the state’s total number of vaccine doses given to 3,974,270.
UDOH said over 1.78 million Utahns are now fully vaccinated and over 2.02 million have received at least one dose of a vaccine.
Children ages 5-11 are now eligible to receive a smaller dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, which has been fully approved by the FDA and CDC, and appointments are now available across the state.
Vaccinated vs. unvaccinated risk ratios
UDOH said it has updated how the department calculates risk ratios on its data dashboard.
“We are now reporting age-adjusted risk ratios,” UDOH officials said. “This is an important update that more accurately reflects the risk for the overall population. The change will result in higher risk ratios for the unvaccinated for being hospitalized and dying. This is because the prior method, which did not age-adjust, biased the data toward older adults who are more likely to be both vaccinated and hospitalized or die from COVID-19 than younger people. By age-adjusting, we are better reflecting the true risk for all Utahns.”
In the last 28 days, people who are unvaccinated are at 16.2 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19, 10 times greater risk of being hospitalized due to COVID-19, and 4.3 times greater risk of testing positive for COVID-19 than vaccinated people.
Since Feb. 1, people who are unvaccinated are at 7.9 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19, 6.7 times greater risk of being hospitalized due to COVID-19, and 3.2 times greater risk of testing positive for COVID-19 than vaccinated people.
Testing
UDOH reports 3,863,416 people have been tested — 12,518 more than yesterday. Of those, 579,376 Utahns have tested positive for COVID-19 — an increase of 2,219 new cases.
The rolling seven-day average for positive tests was 1,592 — down from 1,634 on Monday and 1,650 last week.
On June 1, Utah’s rolling seven-day average had dropped to 200 cases.
The rolling seven-day average for percent positivity of “people over people” dropped slightly 16.6 % while the rolling seven-day average for percent positivity of “tests over tests dropped slightly to 10.9%.
Vaccinations
The state has administered 3,974,270 vaccine doses in total as of Wednesday, which is an increase of 13,338 over yesterday’s numbers.
As of Wednesday, over 2.02 million Utahns had received at least one dose of a vaccine and over 1.78 million Utahns had been fully vaccinated.
Over 4.7 million vaccines have been delivered to Utah.
The eligible population for vaccinations has changed with the expansion of vaccines to the 5- to 11-year-old age group. The state’s dashboard now includes a breakout of vaccines administered for that age group.
Hospitalizations
Currently, 557 people are hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 226 of those people are in intensive care units.
Utah’s ICUs were 96% full and the ICU beds in Utah’s referral centers were 98.4% full Wednesday — above the state’s utilization threshold or “functionally full” mark of 85%.
Forty-three percent of Utah’s ICU usage is due to COVID-19 patients.
“At about 69% overall ICU utilization, ICUs in Utah’s major hospitals with the ability to provide best care for COVID-19 patients begin to reach staffing capacity,” UDOH officials said. “Seventy-two percent use among all hospitals and 77% in referral center hospitals creates major strains on the health care system. When 85% capacity is reached, Utah will be functionally out of staffed ICU beds, indicating an overwhelmed hospital system.”
Primary Children’s Hospital delaying non-urgent procedures and surgeries
Deaths
The virus has killed 3,398 of the state’s residents. One death that was reported on Tuesday, a Salt Lake County female between the ages of 25-44 who was hospitalized at her time of death has been removed.
The following deaths were reported on Wednesday:
- Female, between 65-84, Piute County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, between 65-84, Utah County resident, long-term care facility resident
- Male, between 15-24, Uintah County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death ***not a minor***
- Male, between 45-64, Utah County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Rich County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-64, Duchesne County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, between 45-64, Box Elder 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, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, older than 85, Cache County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, older than 85. Utah County resident, hospitalized at time of death
Nationwide Numbers
Coronavirus Resources
Have you or a family member been affected by coronavirus issues in Utah? KSL wants to hear from you. Contact KSL by emailing social@ksl.com.
Click here to sign up for a vaccine and here to see how Utah’s vaccine rollout is progressing.
The latest COVID-19 stories from KSL can be found here.
How do I prevent it?
The CDC has some simple recommendations, most of which are the same for preventing other respiratory illnesses or the flu:
- Get vaccinated
- Avoid close contact with people who may be sick
- Avoid touching your face
- Stay home when you are sick
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throw the tissue in the trash
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing. Always wash your hands with soap and water if your hands are visibly dirty.
- If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
The CDC recommends Americans should continue wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (e.g., grocery stores and pharmacies).