COVID-19 follow-up in Alaska: 1 death and 159 new cases reported on Tuesday

The deceased was an Anchorage man in his sixties, the health department said. The data does not yet reflect the death of a Utqiagvik resident reported by the Arctic Slope Native Association on Monday.

A total of 224 Alaskan residents – plus the resident of Utqiagvik – and one non-resident with COVID-19 have died since the pandemic hit the state in March. Alaska’s per capita death rate is among the lowest in the country, although the size of the state and vulnerable health care system complicate national comparisons.

On Tuesday, 67 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized statewide and four more patients were suspected of having the virus, according to the state. Hospitalizations are generally down, especially as high numbers were reported in November and early December.

The daily number of cases in the state has also dropped dramatically in recent weeks, though health officials continue to worry about a spike after the holidays. The statewide alert level is still high.

Vaccines reached Alaska in mid-December. As of Tuesday, 29,803 people had received their first dose of the vaccine, with 5,976 given the two doses needed for the vaccine to be fully effective, according to the state’s Vaccine Monitoring Dashboard.

State officials said this week that the state has allocated the received vaccine for December and January, but there are still appointments and large clinics taking place in the days and weeks ahead.

For more information, the public can go to covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322 and leave a message. A record indicates that calls will be returned in order of receipt within 48 hours.

Of the 155 new cases reported Tuesday among Alaskan residents, there were 32 in Anchorage plus one in Chugiak and two in Eagle River; one at Anchor Point, two at Homer, four at Kenai, two at Soldotna and one at Sterling; 18 at Fairbanks and 5 at the North Pole; one in Tok; one in Big Lake, eight in Palmer and 14 in Wasilla; two in Utqiagvik; eight in Juneau; two in Ketchikan; four in Sitka; one in Unalaska; 13 in Bethel; one in Shevak; and one in Hooper Bay.

Of the communities of less than 1,000 people not named for privacy, there were 13 in the borough of North Slope; two in the Fairbanks North Star borough; one in the census area of ​​Nome; one in the Northwestern Arctic Borough; eight in the Bethel census area; one in Bristol Bay plus the boroughs of Lake and Peninsula; and five in the Kusilvak census area.

Four cases were reported Tuesday among non-residents, including one in Anchorage, one in Sitka, one in Unalaska and one in Bethel.

While people can be tested more than once, each case reported by the state’s health department represents only one person.

State data does not specify whether people who test positive for COVID-19 have symptoms. More than half of the country’s infections are transmitted by asymptomatic people, according to CDC estimates.

The statewide test positivity rate as of Tuesday was 4.4% on a seven-day average. Health officials say anything over 5% can indicate inadequate testing and widespread community transmission. The condition peaked at over 9% positivity in November.