Utah adds 22 COVID deaths as Dept. of Health continues clearing backlog

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Department of Health on Friday said 22 more Utahns have lost their lives due to COVID-19 while 131 residents have tested positive for the virus since yesterday.

UDOH said 17 of the 22 deaths reported Friday occurred more than a month ago.

“The deaths reported today represent deaths that were investigated by the Office of the Medical Examiner to determine if they were caused by COVID-19,” officials said.

UDOH said these deaths are part of about 90 additional deaths that were identified on Tuesday as epidemiologists at the UDOH and local health departments review past death certificate data to ensure all COVID-19 deaths have been reported.

“These deaths will be backfilled to their correct date of death on the COVID-19 data dashboard, similar to the normal reporting process we have used throughout the pandemic,” officials said.

Of those 131 cases, 18 (13.74%) were in school-aged children:

• 8 cases in children ages 5-10
• 2 cases in children ages 11-13
• 8 cases in children ages 14-17

Currently, 110 Utahns are in the hospital with confirmed cases of COVID-19 — an increase of one since yesterday and the state’s lowest count since May 11 (63).

Hospitalizations

Of the 110 people currently hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19, 22 of those people are in intensive care units — an increase of two from yesterday’s count.

Utah’s ICUs were 65.6% full Friday and the ICU beds in Utah’s 16 referral centers, where the majority of COVID-19 patients are treated, were 68.7% full — below the state’s utilization warning mark of 77%.

Just four 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.”

Vaccinations

As of Friday, 4,997,687 vaccine doses have been given in Utah — an increase of 1,964 since yesterday.

Over 1.99 million Utahns are now fully vaccinated, over 2.25 million have received at least one dose of a vaccine and over 892,000 have received a booster dose.

Over 6.15 million vaccine doses have been delivered to the Beehive State.

Data includes the total number of people who have received a booster dose, a breakdown by age (over 65 and under 65), and data on the type of booster dose people have received.

Children ages 5-11 are 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 available across the state. Moderna’s vaccine has also received full U.S. approval.

All Utahns age 18 and older, who received their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine more than five months ago, or a Johnson & Johnson vaccine more than two months ago, are also eligible for a booster shot.

Three studies released by the CDC offer more evidence that COVID-19 vaccines are standing up to the omicron variant, at least among people who received booster shots.

Booster shots needed against omicron, CDC studies show

Teens ages 12 to 17 are also eligible for a Pfizer booster dose.

The FDA and CDC have approved booster doses for Americans and urged those age 50 and older to seek one.

Vaccinated and booster vs. unvaccinated risk ratios

In the last 28 days, people who are unvaccinated are at 21.1 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19, 5 times greater risk of being hospitalized due to COVID-19, and 1.9 times greater risk of testing positive for COVID-19 than boosted people.

In the last 28 days, people who are unvaccinated are at 4.4 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19, 2 times greater risk of being hospitalized due to COVID-19, and 1.9 times greater risk of testing positive for COVID-19 than vaccinated people.

Testing

UDOH reports 5,000,346 people have been tested — 2,430 more since yesterday. Of those, 927,013 Utahns have tested positive for COVID-19 — an increase of 131 new cases.

The rolling seven-day average for positive tests was 127 — down from 134 on Monday and 169 the week before.

The rolling seven-day average for percent positivity of “people over people” dropped to 4.6% while the rolling seven-day average for percent positivity of “tests over tests” remained at 2.7%.

Deaths

The virus has killed 4,702 of the state’s residents. UDOH said 17 of the following deaths, which were reported Friday, occurred before Feb. 25:

• Male, between 45-64, Utah County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 25-44, Davis County resident, long-term care facility resident
• Female, older than 85, Weber County resident, long-term care facility resident
• Male, between 65-84, Utah County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
• Female, older than 85, Salt Lake County resident, long-term care facility resident
• Male, between 65-84, Carbon County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 65-84, Washington County resident, long-term care facility resident
• Female, between 25-44, Salt Lake County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 65-84, Tooele County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time
• Male, between 65-84, Davis County resident, long-term care facility resident
• Male, between 65-84, Utah County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 65-84, Tooele County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Female, between 65-84, Tooele County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 65-84, Cache County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 65-84, San Juan County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Female, between 65-84, Juab County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 45-64, Weber County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 25-44, Carbon County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 65-84, Cache County resident, hospitalized at time of death
• Male, between 45-64, Utah County resident, not 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, unknown if hospitalized at time of death

A death that was reported on Thursday has been retracted following further examination from the medical examiner:

• Male, between 45-64, Salt Lake County resident, unknown if hospitalized at time of death

Nationwide Numbers

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Coronavirus Resources

• For more information about COVID-19 from Utah’s Department of health visit: coronavirus.utah.gov/*
• For more data from UDOH visit: coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts/.
• To see how Utah calculates deaths for COVID-19, and other deaths in Utah, visit coronavirus.utah.gov/covid-19-deaths/.
• For more on the science and research from the U.S. Center of Disease Control visit: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/science/science-and-research.html.
• To view aggregated global COVID-19 statistics visit: worldometers.info/coronavirus/
• To view a county-by-county look at COVID-19 in the United States visit: coronavirus.jhu.edu/us-map.

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 and a booster dose if it has been more than five months (Pfizer/Moderna) since your second dose or two months (J&J) since your first
• 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.

Updated isolation guidelines can be found here.