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SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s number of COVID-19 cases has increased by 694 from Monday, with four more deaths reported, according to the Utah Department of Health.
The health department now estimates there are 16,835 active cases of the disease in Utah. The rolling seven-day average number of positive cases per day is now at 1,012, according to the health department. The positive test rate per day for that time period is now 13.7%.
The new numbers indicate a 1% increase in positive cases since Monday. Of the 821,864 people tested for COVID-19 in Utah so far, 8.7% have tested positive for the disease. The health department reports an increase of 4,403 tests conducted as of Tuesday.
There are currently 183 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Utah, including 71 in intensive care unit, or ICU, beds across the state. About 61% of all ICU beds in Utah are filled as of Tuesday, while about 46% of non-ICU beds are occupied, state data shows.
The four deaths reported Tuesday were:
- A Salt Lake County woman who was between the ages of 65 and 84 and was a resident of a long-term care facility
- A Salt Lake County woman who was over the age of 85 and was hospitalized when she died
- A Davis County woman who was between the ages of 65 and 84 and was hospitalized when she died
- A Washington County woman who was between the ages of 65 and 84, with an unknown hospitalization or long-term care facility status
Tuesday's totals give Utah 72,136 total confirmed cases, with 3,807 total hospitalizations and 457 total deaths from the disease. A total of 54,844 Utah COVID-19 cases are now considered recovered, according to the health department.
There is not a COVID-19 news conference scheduled for Tuesday. Utah officials typically provide updates at news conferences once a week on Wednesdays or Thursdays.
Outbreak at Utah State Prison
Also Tuesday, the Utah Department of Corrections reported a COVID-19 outbreak in the Utah State Prison in Draper. As of Monday, there were 47 cases at the prison, according to a news release from the agency.
On Sept. 25, 164 inmates in the Baker Block of the prison were tested for COVID-19. Prison officials suspect that some of the inmates may have contracted the disease from a medical provider who treated the inmates.
The provider was wearing full personal protective equipment but developed COVID-19 symptoms shortly after treating the inmates, the news release says. The medical provider was then tested and quarantined.
All the inmates who were treated by the medical provider have been isolated and tested for COVID-19, and the prison is now on a modified lockdown, the release says. Two of the confirmed COVID-19 cases are newly booked inmates.
“Our team and those we supervise have worked diligently and heroically to keep COVID-19 from entering our general incarcerated population,” Mike Haddon, executive director for the Utah Department of Corrections, said in the release. “We are genuinely concerned about the possible transmission of this virus, which is why we are following and exceeding CDC recommendations and working with local health officials to contain any potential outbreak.”
Methodology:
Test results now include data from PCR tests and antigen tests. Positive COVID-19 test results are reported to the health department immediately after they are confirmed, but negative test results may not be reported for 24 to 72 hours.
The total number of cases reported by the Utah Department of Health each day includes all cases of COVID-19 since Utah's outbreak began, including those who are currently infected, those who have recovered from the disease, and those who have died.
Recovered cases are defined as anyone who was diagnosed with COVID-19 three or more weeks ago and has not died.
Deaths reported by the state typically occurred two to seven days prior to when they are reported, according to the health department. Some deaths may be from even further back, especially if the person is from Utah but has died in another state.
The health department reports both confirmed and probable COVID-19 case deaths per the case definition outlined by the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists. The death counts are subject to change as case investigations are completed.
Data included in this story primarily reflects the state of Utah as a whole. For more localized data, visit your local health district's website.
Information is 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 down to the "Data Notes" section at the bottom of the page.
