COVID-19 follow-up in Alaska: 12 deaths and 756 new cases reported on Friday

The high and consistent daily caseload translates into more deaths and hospitalizations that put a strain on the healthcare system, health officials say.

Three of the deaths have occurred recently, according to public health officials: an Anchorage woman in her 90s; a Kodiak woman in her 80s; and a woman from Kenai in her 80s.

Nine of the deaths were reported following a review of death certificates: a woman from Kenai in her 90s; a woman from Cordoba in her 90s; a woman from Utqiagvik in her sixties; a woman from Wasilla in her sixties; a man from Wasilla in his sixties; an Anchorage man in his 80s; an Anchorage man in his sixties who died incapacitated; and two women from Anchorage, both in their sixties.

The only day more deaths were reported was in late November, when 13 people who had died from the virus were added to state data. The new daily tally is also a near-record after the state reported 760 cases on Thursday. Officials say daily reports underestimate the actual number of positive cases due to a backlog in public health data.

A total of 141 Alaskan residents have died with the virus since it was first detected here in March. While the state’s overall per capita death rate remains one of the lowest in the country, state officials say it’s difficult to compare Alaska to other states because of its geography unique and its vulnerable health system.

Officials continue to report that shrinking hospital capacity and understaffing is a major concern statewide.

State data showed only five intensive care beds are available in Anchorage hospitals on Friday, where the state’s sickest patients tend to end up.

On Friday, the capacity of intensive care units in Alaska was in the red zone, over 75% full. There were 134 people hospitalized for COVID-19, as well as 15 people suspected of infections. Twenty-seven adult intensive care unit beds were available out of 125, and 14.3% of adult hospitalizations in Alaska were linked to COVID.

Of the 744 new cases reported by the state among Alaskan residents on Friday, there were 237 in Anchorage, plus 19 in Eagle River, four in Chugiak and one in Girdwood; 193 in Wasilla, 54 in Palmer, one in Big Lake and one in Sutton-Alpine; 23 in Soldotna, 17 in Kenai, six in Homer, two in Anchor Point, one in Seward, one in Nikiski and one in Sterling; 25 at Fairbanks and 10 at the North Pole; 34 to Kodiak; 29 in Juneau and two in Douglas; 18 in Utqiagvik; seven at Delta Junction and two at Tok; eight at Bethel; three in Sitka; two in Shevak; one in Valdez; one in Kotzebue; and one in Wrangell.

Of the communities of less than 1,000 individuals not named for privacy, there were seven in the Yukon-Koyukuk census region; six in the Bethel census area; six in the Valdez-Cordova census area; four in the district of Matanuska-Susitna; three in the north of the Kenai Peninsula; two in the Ketchikan Gateway borough; two in Bristol Bay plus the Boroughs of Lake and Peninsula; one in the borough of Kodiak Island; one in the Fairbanks North Star borough; one in the census area of ​​Nome; three in the Northwestern Arctic Borough; two in the Kusilvak census area; one in the Yakutat plus Hoonah-Angoon region; and one in the Dillingham census area.

Twelve cases have been reported among non-residents: four in Fairbanks, one in Delta Junction, one in Wasilla, one in a smaller community in the Northwest Arctic, one in Sitka, and four in unidentified areas of the state.

Anchorage began a modified month-long ‘squat’ this week to curb high rates of the virus spread and protect health care capacity. State health officials continue to encourage Alaskans to avoid indoor gatherings with non-family members and report that most Alaskan residents who contract get the virus from a friend, family member or coworker.

Travel is also currently considered a high risk activity.

The Centers for Disease Control announced this week that they are revising their quarantine guidelines to allow people who may have been exposed to COVID-19 to shorten their quarantine period from two weeks to seven days with a negative COVID-19 test. .

More than a million tests have been carried out in Alaska since March. While people can be tested more than once, each case reported by the state’s health department represents only one person.

Among the new cases, the state does not report how many people show symptoms when they test positive. The CDC estimates that about a third of people with the virus are asymptomatic.

On Thursday, the state had an average positivity rate of 6.65% over the past seven days. Health officials warn that a positivity rate above 5% can mean that there aren’t enough general tests done in a community.