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The growing outbreak comes as the more contagious delta variant of COVID-19 has spread rapidly in some low-vaccination pockets of the country, particularly in the southeast. Hospitalizations in North Dakota remain near their lowest pandemic levels, but some states with increasing delta prevalence have seen their hospitals struggle to cope with surges.
The North Dakota Department of Health has detected 33 cases of the delta variant in North Dakota. But the department only performs genome sequencing on a small fraction of positive tests, and health experts believe the highly contagious strain has become the dominant variant across the country in recent weeks.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention responded to delta outbreaks with amended guidelines recommending a return to mask wearing in indoor public spaces in high transmission areas, including Bismarck and Minot.
And experts from North Dakota have said that North Dakota’s below-average vaccination rate makes it vulnerable to outbreaks caused by the delta, especially in areas where the vaccine has not been widely accepted. The majority of adults in many counties in western North Dakota are still not vaccinated.
Below are the rates of COVID-19 cases, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations from the North Dakota Department of Health as of Friday. Since all data is preliminary, some figures and totals may change from day to day.
Vaccination
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FIRST DOSE ADMINISTERED: 324,770 (49.3% of the population aged 12 and over)
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COMPLETE SERIES (2 doses): 304,294 (46.4% of the population aged 12 and over)
The health department urges residents 12 years of age and older to get vaccinated and search for information at www.health.nd.gov/covidvaccinelocator.
Statewide case rate
- NEW CASES: 401
- ACTIVE CASES AT JULY 31: 431
- TOTAL CASES: 111 570
- TOTAL RECOVERED: 109,600
North Dakota’s active cases increased by 190 over the past week, marking the second consecutive week of growth and a significantly larger increase than the week before. In the past seven days, the state has recorded more than 400 new positive tests. Burleigh County, which includes Bismarck, leads the state with 85 active cases, while Ward County, which includes Minot, has 82.
The state’s 14-day average positivity rate for its COVID-19 cases has risen to 2.8%, nearly three times the rate at the start of July.
Hospitalizations, death
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ACTIVE HOSPITALIZATIONS: 11
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NEWLY REPORTED DEATHS: 1
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TOTAL DEATHS: 1,539
The department reported one new death last week in Burleigh County. Although the number of active cases increased in the two weeks, hospitalizations remain at some of their lowest levels in the pandemic, falling by two since last Friday. The majority of people hospitalized in the state are between 60 and 69 years old.
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