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The Utah Department of Health reported 396 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, the eighth day in a row that daily count has been 480 or less.
It also marked two full weeks in which fewer than 1,000 new cases have been reported each day. The highest tally in the past 14 days was 844 on Feb. 18; the second-highest tally was 664 on Feb. 23.
That stands in stark contrast to the omicron variant surge in January and early February, when the number of new cases in a day peaked at 13,521 on Jan. 14. The combined number of new cases in the past two weeks — 6,219 — is less than half of that.
The health department on Thursday also reported six additional deaths, bringing Utah’s total to 4,442, since the pandemic began nearly two years ago. One of the deaths occurred before Feb. 3 and only recently was confirmed to have been caused by COVID-19.
Officials on Wednesday also reported 299 patients hospitalized in Utah with COVID-19, seven fewer patients than reported Wednesday, and 64 COVID-19 patients in Utah’s intensive care units — up one from Wednesday.
ICU occupancy rates were up slightly. Officials reported that 74.3% of all Utah ICU beds were occupied, compared with 70.8% the day before. ICUs in the state’s larger “referral” hospitals were at 76.9% capacity, higher than Wednesday’s 72.8%.
Both ICU capacity figures Thursday were below the 85% threshold that hospital administrators have said is necessary to leave room for unpredictable staffing levels, new patients and availability of specialized equipment and personnel.
Of all ICU patients in the state, 12.3% were hospitalized because of COVID-19.
A UDOH analysis continues to show that booster shots significantly decrease Utahns’ chances of dying of COVID-19. Over the past four weeks:
• An unvaccinated person who contracts the virus is 4.9 times more likely to die than a fully vaccinated person, and 15.1 times more likely than a person who has received a booster dose.
• An unvaccinated person who contracts the virus is 2.3 times more likely to be hospitalized than a fully vaccinated person, and six times more likely than a person who has received a booster dose.
• An unvaccinated person is 1.9 as likely to contract the virus than a fully vaccinated person, and 2.2 times more likely than a person who has received a booster dose.
According to state data, 61.1% of Utahns were fully vaccinated as of Wednesday. However, just 26.9% of all Utahns have received a booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Find where to get vaccinated at coronavirus.utah.gov/vaccine-distribution. Find where to get tested at coronavirus.utah.gov/utah-covid-19-testing-locations.
Breakdown of updated figures
Vaccine doses administered in the past day/total doses administered • 3,488 / 4,954,299.
Number of Utahns fully vaccinated • 1,985,810 — 61.1% of Utah’s total population. That is an increase of 1,060 in the past day.
Cases reported during the past day • 396.
Vaccination status • Health officials do not immediately have or release the vaccination status of individuals who test positive, who are hospitalized or who die. They do calculate the overall risk ratios of these outcomes depending on vaccination status, which is listed below.
Tests reported in the past day • A total of 9,715 people were tested.
Deaths reported in the past day • Six. One of the deaths occurred before Feb. 3.
Two of the deaths were in Salt Lake County — a man and a woman between the ages of 65-84. And there were two deaths in Davis County — a woman 65-84, and a woman 85 or older.
There were also two deaths in Washington County — a man 25-44, and a man 85 or older.
Percentage of positive tests • Under the state’s original method, the rate was 9.7% in the past day. That is lower than the seven-day average of 12.4%.
The state’s new method counts all test results, including repeated tests of the same individual. Wednesday’s rate was 4.1%, lower than the seven-day average of 7.6%.
[Read more: Utah is changing how it measures the rate of positive COVID-19 tests. Here’s what that means.]
Totals to date • 923,987 cases; 4,442 deaths; 33,372 hospitalizations; 9,256,660 tests administered.
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