Reported cases in Arizona: 242,480.
Cases increased by 1,315 or 0.54% from Wednesday’s 241,165 identified cases since the outbreak began.
Cases by county: 156,736 in Maricopa, 28,067 in Pima, 13,735 in Yuma, 11,937 in Pinal, 6,410 in Navajo, 5,243 in Coconino, 4,371 in Mohave, 3,965 in Apache, 3,021 in Santa Cruz, 2,961 in Yavapai, 2,171 in Cochise, 1,945 in Gila, 1,197 in Graham, 620 in La Paz and 101 in Greenlee, according to state numbers.
The rate of cases per 100,000 people is highest in Yuma County, followed by Santa Cruz, Navajo and Apache counties. The rate in Yuma County is 5,973 cases per 100,000 people. By comparison, the U.S. average rate is 2,645 cases per 100,000 people, according to data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Navajo Nation reported 11,462 cases and 575 confirmed deaths as of Wednesday. The Navajo Nation includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
The Arizona Department of Corrections said 2,636 inmates had tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday, including 995 in Tucson; 40,973 inmates statewide have been tested.
A total of 762 prison staff members have self-reported testing positive, the state corrections department said. Eighteen incarcerated people in Arizona have been confirmed to have died of COVID-19, with 10 additional deaths under investigation.
While race/ethnicity is unknown for 30% of all COVID-19 cases statewide, 31% of cases are Hispanic or Latino, 26% are white, 6% are Native American, 3% are Black and 1% are Asian/Pacific Islander.
Laboratories have completed 1,745,662 diagnostic tests for COVID-19, 10.2% of which have come back positive. That number now includes both PCR and antigen testing. The percentage of positive tests had increased since mid-May but began decreasing in July. Last week it was at 6%, up from 5% the week prior and 4% for six weeks before that. The state numbers leave out data from labs that do not report electronically.
ADHS has begun including probable cases as anyone with a positive antigen test, another type of test to determine current infection. Antigen tests (not related to antibody tests) are a newer type of COVID-19 diagnostic test that use a nasal swab or another fluid sample to test for current infection. Results are typically produced within 15 minutes.
A positive antigen test result is considered very accurate, but there’s an increased chance of false-negative results, the Mayo Clinic says. Depending on the situation, Mayo Clinic officials say a doctor may recommend a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test to confirm a negative antigen test result.
Arizona, as of Tuesday had the 16th highest overall rate of infection in the country, an improvement over 14th place on Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Infection’s COVID Data Tracker says.
Ahead of Arizona in cases per 100,000 people since the pandemic began are North Dakota, South Dakota, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Wisconsin, Iowa, Tennessee, , Florida, Arkansas, Idaho, South Carolina, Utah, Nebraska and Georgia, according to the CDC.
Arizona’s infection rate is 3,348 cases per 100,000 people, the CDC said. The national average is 2,645 cases per 100,000 people, though the rates in states hard-hit early on in the pandemic may be an undercount because a lack of available testing in March and April.
Reported deaths: 5,918
County deaths: 3,566 in Maricopa, 638 in Pima, 354 in Yuma, 240 in Navajo, 231 in Mohave, 225 in Pinal, 169 in Apache, 149 in Coconino, 89 in Yavapai, 75 in Cochise, 70 in Gila, 65 in Santa Cruz, 28 in Graham, 17 in La Paz and fewer than three in Greenlee.
People aged 65 and older made up 4,213 of the 5,918 deaths, or 71%.
While race/ethnicity is unknown for 11% of deaths, 42% of those who died were white, 30% were Hispanic or Latino, 11% were Native American, 3% were Black and 1% were Asian/Pacific Islander, the state data show.
The global death toll on Thursday was 1,716,328 and the U.S. had the highest death count of any country in the world, at 227,897, according to Johns Hopkins University. Arizona’s death total of 5,918 deaths represents 2.6% of COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. as of Wednesday.
The COVID-19 death rate in Arizona was 82 per 100,000 people as of Wednesday, according to the CDC, putting it 10th in the country in a state ranking that separates New York City and New York state. The U.S. average is 68 deaths per 100,000 people, the CDC says.
Behind New York City, at 285 deaths per 100,000 people, the CDC put the highest death rates ahead of Arizona as New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Louisiana, Rhode Island, Mississippi, the District of Columbia and New York state.
Reach health care reporter Stephanie Innes at Stephanie.Innes@gannett.com or at 602-444-8369. Follow her on Twitter @stephanieinnes
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