Utah Reports 2,018 COVID-19 Cases, Nine Additional Deaths Over Weekend
Aug 9, 2021, 1:23 PM
(Photo by Justin Tallis - Pool / Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Department of Health on Monday said nine more Utahns have died due to COVID-19 and 2,018 residents tested positive for the virus over the weekend.
UDOH broke down those cases into the following:
- Friday: 948
- Saturday: 662
- Sunday: 403
- Five additional cases were added to days prior to Friday
Currently, 380 Utahns are hospitalized due to the virus and the ICUs at Utah’s 16 referral center hospitals were 79.5% full — just above the state’s “functionally full” warning of 77%.
The state’s seven-day rolling average of positive tests was 827 on Monday, and 17 counties are now listed in the high transmission level, including Davis, Weber, Salt Lake, Utah and Washington counties.
An additional 18,877 vaccine doses have been administered since Friday, bringing the state’s total to 3,084,676.
UDOH said over 1.5 million Utahns are now fully vaccinated and over 1.71 million have received at least one dose of a vaccine.
State health officials also released the following statement from Gov. Spencer Cox last week:
“Unfortunately, nearly everyone who is getting sick, and who will end up in the hospital because of today’s case counts, is unvaccinated. This pandemic of the unvaccinated is tragic because it is preventable. It has never been easier to get a vaccine. While we are encouraged by increases in vaccinations, we need more people to protect themselves and their families.”
Of the 1,469,844 Utahns who have been fully vaccinated, 5,841 (0.3974%) have tested positive for COVID-19, 353 have been hospitalized (0.024%) and 21 have died (0.00143%).
As of Monday, 2,503 Utahns had died due to COVID-19.
“The UDOH determines vaccine status for cases using two methods — by linking all known cases to vaccination records reported into the Utah Statewide Immunization Information System (USIIIS) and through self-report by asking all cases if they have been fully vaccinated,” UDOH officials said. “Breakthrough cases may be overrepresented in the data due to this self-reporting.”
Testing
UDOH reports 2,974,486 people have been tested — 14,278 more than Friday. Of those, 440,497 Utahns have tested positive for COVID-19 — an increase of 2,018 new cases.
The rolling seven-day average for positive tests was 827 — down from 859 on Friday.
On June 1, Utah’s rolling seven-day average was 200 cases.
The rolling seven-day average for percent positivity of “people over people” dipped slightly to 14.4% while the rolling seven-day average for percent positivity of “tests over tests” dipped to 10.3%.
Vaccinations
The state has administered 3,084,676 vaccine doses in total, which is an increase of 18,877 over Friday’s numbers.
As of Monday, over 1.71 million Utahns had received at least one dose of a vaccine and over 1.5 million Utahns had been fully vaccinated.
Over 3.46 million vaccines have been delivered to Utah.
Hospitalizations
Currently, 380 people are hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19, and 160 of those people were in intensive care units.
Utah’s ICUs were 77.5% full and the ICU beds in Utah’s referral centers were 79.5% full Friday — below the state’s utilization threshold or “functionally full” mark of 85% but above the warning mark of 77%.
“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.”
Deaths
To date, the virus has killed 2,503 of the state’s residents. The following deaths were reported Monday:
- Male, between 45-64, Salt Lake 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, Weber County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Box Elder County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Davis County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Female, between 65-84, Utah County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Davis County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 65-84, Utah County resident, hospitalized at time of death
- Male, between 45-64, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of deathNationwide 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:
- 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 unvaccinated 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).