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The Utah Department of Health reported eight more deaths caused by COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the total to 4,344 since the pandemic began.
Two of the deaths occurred before Jan. 17, and were only recently confirmed to be the result of the coronavirus.
The number of deaths reported so far in February rose to 236 — 5.4% of Utah’s total. The state’s first death was reported March 22, 2020, almost 23 months ago.
UDOH also reported that the number of new COVID-19 cases almost doubled in the past two days, but they remained a fraction of the numbers being reported a month ago.
The Utah Department of Health reported 1,032 new cases of COVID-19 in the past day. That marks the eighth day in a row and the 11th time in the past 12 days that the number of new cases has been below 2,000.
Positive tests have been trending down since a peak of more than 13,000 cases in mid-January, as the virus’s omicron variant spread in Utah.
The number of Utahns hospitalized with COVID-19 also is trending down, after a huge spike in January. The overall number of coronavirus patients fell 22 in the past day to 476, and the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care units throughout the state declined by seven to 110.
ICUs in the state’s larger “referral” hospitals are at 80% capacity, lower than the 85% threshold that hospital administrators have said is necessary to leave room for unpredictable staffing levels, new patients and availability of specialized equipment and personnel. ICUs in those larger hospitals had surpassed 85% occupancy almost continuously since late August, but numbers dropped below that threshold Monday.
Overall, 76.4% of ICU beds across the state are filled, and 21.1% of intensive care patients are suffering from COVID-19.
According to state data, 60.7% of Utahns were fully vaccinated as of Thursday. However, researchers have found that a booster is crucial to prevent serious illness — and just 26.3% of all Utahns have received a booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Find where to get vaccinated at coronavirus.utah.gov/vaccine-distribution. Find where to get tested at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-covid-19-testing-locations.
Breakdown of updated figures
Vaccine doses administered in the past day/total doses administered • 4,983 / 4,912,322.
Number of Utahns fully vaccinated • 1,973,064 — 60.7% of Utah’s total population. That is an increase of 1,731 in the past day.
Cases reported in the past day • 1,032.
Vaccination status • Health officials do not immediately have or release the vaccination status of individuals who test positive, who are hospitalized or who die. They do calculate the overall risk ratios of these outcomes depending on vaccination status, which is listed below.
Tests reported in the past day • A total of 11,135 people were tested.
Deaths reported Thursday • Eight.
There were two deaths in Salt Lake County — a man between the ages of 45-64, and a man 85-plus. There were also two deaths in Washington County — a woman 45-64, and a woman 85-plus.
The other deaths were a Davis County man 45-64; an Emery County man 65-84; a Sanpete County man 85-plus; and a Weber County woman 65-84.
Utahns currently hospitalized with COVID-19 • 476. That is 22 fewer than reported on Wednesday. Of those currently hospitalized, 110 are in intensive care — seven fewer than on Wednesday.
Percentage of positive tests • Under the state’s original method, the rate was 22% in the past day. That is lower than the seven-day average of 27%.
The state’s new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Wednesday’s rate was 9.3%, lower than the seven-day average of 16.1%.
[Read more: Utah is changing how it measures the rate of positive COVID-19 tests. Here’s what that means.]
Risk ratios • In the past four weeks, unvaccinated Utahns were 8.7 times as likely to die of COVID-19 as vaccinated people were, according to a Utah Department of Health analysis. The unvaccinated also were 4.2 times as likely to be hospitalized, and 2.4 times as likely to test positive for the coronavirus.
Totals to date • 917,223 cases; 4,344 deaths; 32,767 hospitalizations; 9,137,279 tests administered.
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