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SALT LAKE CITY – Utahns aged 65 to 69 are now eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, several weeks earlier than expected.
All vaccine suppliers will now accept appointments for people 65 and older, Utah Governor Spencer Cox said in an update on the COVID-19 pandemic at a conference press release Thursday morning.
Vaccinations are progressing rapidly, especially over the past week, Cox said. About 62% of Utahns aged 70 and over have now received their first dose of the vaccine, and some counties have vaccinated higher percentages of this age group, the governor added.
This allowed the state to extend eligibility to people 65 and older by March 1, which was the previous date for the expansion of this age group.
“We have made incredible progress over the last month,” Cox said.
People can go to coronavirus.utah.gov to schedule an appointment for a vaccine. Thursday’s expansion does not apply to people with co-morbidities – those people will still be eligible from March 1. The list of vaccine-eligible comorbidities is available at coronavirus.utah.gov/vaccine.
Some counties still have more vaccine doses available than others, and it will likely take a long time to get an appointment for a vaccine with expanded eligibility, Cox added. He urged Utahns to continue to be patient as they try to get the vaccine.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox spoke at a press conference with PBS Utah Thursday morning. Watch the replay of the event below.
New COVID-19 cases
The number of COVID-19 cases in Utah increased by 1,151 on Thursday, with seven more deaths reported, according to the Utah Department of Health.
The seven-day rolling average number of positive cases per day is now 830, according to the health department. The positive test rate per day for this period of time reported with the “people over people” method is now 13.6%. The positive test rate per day averaged over seven days calculated with the “test-by-test” method is now 6.3%.
There are now 258 COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized in Utah, including 105 in intensive care, according to state data. About 74% of the intensive care unit beds in Utah are occupied Thursday, including about 78% of the intensive care beds at the state’s 16 referral hospitals. About 54% of non-ICU hospital beds are now occupied, according to the health department.
A total of 563,608 vaccines have been administered in the state, up from 551,068 on Wednesday. Of those, 179,458 are second doses of the vaccine, according to state data.
The new figures indicate a 0.3% increase in positive cases since Wednesday. Of the 2,144,709 people tested for COVID-19 in Utah so far, 17% have tested positive for COVID-19. The total number of tests performed rose to 3,652,448 Thursday – 21,055 more than Wednesday. Of those, 8,121 were tests of people who had not previously been tested for COVID-19.
The seven deaths reported Thursday were:
- Cache County woman, 65 to 84, resident in long-term care facility
- Grand County man who was between 45 and 64 and was hospitalized when he died
- Three Salt Lake County men who were aged 65 to 84 and were hospitalized when they died
- Utah County man over 85 admitted to hospital after death
- Weber County woman aged 65 to 84 admitted to hospital after death
Thursday’s totals give Utah 364,399 total confirmed cases, with 14,343 total hospitalizations and 1,813 total deaths from the disease.
Several counties moved the classification on the Utah Transmission Index this week. The health department is assessing the current COVID-19 situation in a county every week on Wednesday and announcing any adjustments on Thursday. Counties are now classified as follows:
- High transmission level: Beaver, Cache, Davis, Emery, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Salt Lake, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Utah, Wasatch and Washington counties
- Moderate transmission level: Box Elder, Carbon, Duchesne, Millard, Morgan, San Juan, Uintah and Weber
- Low level of transmission: Daggett, Garfield, Piute, Rich and Wayne
Vaccinations on the increase
The number of coronavirus cases in Utah has started to decline in recent weeks as vaccinations have increased. On Wednesday, the state reported fewer than 100 patients with COVID-19 in intensive care for the first time since October.
Utah’s vaccine allowance continues to increase weekly and currently stands at about 45,000 doses delivered to the state each week, Cox said.
A total of 563,608 doses have now been administered in Utah, according to the governor. This represents an increase of 551,068 on Wednesday and almost 101,000 last week, he added.
Utah’s one-day immunization record was 24,618 doses administered on February 11. The state still uses each dose of vaccine within seven days of being shipped to Utah, he said.
About 91% of residents in long-term care facilities have now been vaccinated, the governor said. The majority of COVID-19 deaths in Utah are from this population, so it’s encouraging to see such a high number of vaccinations among this group, he added. Of the 62% of Utahn aged 70 and older who received at least one dose of the vaccine, about 15% received a second dose, Cox said.
Cox said he still expects every adult in Utah who wants a COVID-19 vaccine to be able to get one by April or May.
“We feel really good about it,” he said.
There are about 130,000 people in the 65 to 69 age group, so at a rate of 45,000 doses per week, vaccinating this group will take several weeks, Cox added. The state will continue to expand vaccine eligibility by age group, so the 60 to 64 age group will likely be the next eligible population, he said. However, he did not give a timeline for expanding eligibility to this next group.
Although Cox added that the state is not planning to impose vaccines for Utahns, he urged people to get them when they are eligible so the state can continue to see a decrease in the number of cases of Utahn. COVID-19.
“We all have a duty to protect each other, that’s how it works,” Cox said.
Vaccine rollout in Salt Lake County differs
Although Cox has announced that all Utahns aged 65 and over are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, Salt Lake County’s deployment in this age group will differ slightly.
Residents of Salt Lake County aged 69 and over will be eligible for the vaccine starting at 6 p.m. Thursday, the Salt Lake County Department of Health said. County residents aged 68 and over will be able to book an appointment starting at 6 p.m. Friday.
Eligibility will gradually open up for the remaining age groups in the same way each day over the weekend. Eligibility for those 67 and over will begin at 6 p.m. Saturday, those 66 and over will be eligible from 6 p.m. Sunday, and those 65 and over will be eligible from 6 p.m. on Monday.
People still have to make an appointment with the health department; walk-ins are not currently available. For more information and to make an appointment, go to SaltLakeHealth.org and click on “COVID Vaccine Information”.
Methodology:
The test results now include data from PCR tests and antigen tests. Positive COVID-19 test results are reported to the health department immediately after confirmation, but negative test results may not be reported for 24 to 72 hours.
The total number of cases reported each day by the Utah Department of Health includes all COVID-19 cases since the start of the Utah epidemic, including those currently infected, those who have passed away. recovered from illness and those who died.
Cured cases are defined as anyone who was diagnosed with COVID-19 three or more weeks ago and who has not died.
Referral hospitals are the 16 hospitals in Utah capable of providing the best healthcare for COVID-19.
The deaths reported by the state have generally occurred two to seven days before they are reported, according to the health department. Some deaths can be even more distant, especially if the person is from Utah but died in another state.
The health department reports both deaths from confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 according to the case definition set by the State Council and territorial epidemiologists. The number of deaths is subject to change as case investigations are completed.
For deaths reported as COVID-19 deaths, the person would not have died if they did not have COVID-19, according to the health department.
The “people over people” method for the average seven-day positive test rate is calculated by dividing the number of people who have tested positive for COVID-19 by the total number of people tested. The “test-by-test” method is calculated by dividing the total number of positive tests by the total number of tests administered.
The data included in this story primarily reflects the state of Utah as a whole. For more localized data, visit your local health district website.
More information on Utah’s health counseling levels is available at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-health-guidance-levels.
The information comes from the Utah Department of Health and coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts. For more information on how the Utah Department of Health compiles and reports COVID-19 data, visit coronavirus.utah.gov/case-counts and scroll to the “Data Notes” section ” at the bottom of the page.
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