Monday, December 21, 2020
As COVID-19 continues to spread substantially throughout the state, Arizona is breaking records for its weekly case count, hospitals are having to cancel elective surgeries to care for an exceeding number of coronavirus patients and the first COVID-19 vaccine may already face shortages among healthcare workers.
The week ending Dec. 13 saw at least 44,390 new COVID-19 cases in Arizona, a 10% increase from the week prior. This sets a record for weekly case counts in the state, according to Dr. Joe Gerald, a professor at the University of Arizona who creates weekly coronavirus epidemiology reports based on ADHS data.
However, Gerald says this number could be even higher than reported due to a significant lag time in processing COVID-19 tests, as nearly 10,000 patients were told their test could not be completed due to a laboratory backlog.
Coronavirus test positivity also set a record in the state at 26.3% last week, according to Gerald’s report.
Though the state has yet to surpass its deadliest week that ended July 19 with 617 COVID-19 deaths, Gerald estimates by Christmas, Arizona will see more than 500 deaths a week.
Pima County also set a record for cases in a single week with 7,237 coronavirus cases the week ending Dec. 13, a 14% increase from the week prior, Gerald’s report says.
Hospitals dangerously near capacity, cancel elective surgeries
As of Dec. 18, the UA professor’s report says 47% of the state’s general ward beds and 53% of its ICU beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients.
“We are now undergoing the great ‘displacement’ such that hospital services are now being rationed so that patients with severe Covid-19 illness are displacing others who have slightly less severe non-Covid medical conditions. As Covid-19 illness continues to increase, delaying others’ care will become ever more difficult,” Gerald’s said in the report. “Make no mistake, the Covid-19 crisis is now placing a greater share of Arizonans at-risk, not just those unfortunate enough to contract Covid-19.”
Friday, December 18, 2020
The FBI’s Phoenix field office is warning buyers of common scams during the holiday shopping season.
In 2019, 7,795 Arizona consumers claimed a total loss of more than $47 million, according to a press release from the FBI.
The three main scams the FBI warns shoppers of include online shopping, gift card and charity scams.
Some online stores offer reduced brand-name merchandise that is compromised or doesn’t exist. Scammers often use phishing tactics in emails and advertisements, which involve fraudulent links or attachments that if clicked on, can reveal personal information.
The same thing can happen when clicking on fake social media posts that appear to be vouchers or gift cards but rather reveal personal information, according to the release.
Shoppers should also be wary of buying gift cards from outside sources requesting their purchase.
“In these scams, the victims receive either a spoofed email, a spoofed phone call, or a spoofed text from a person in authority requesting the victim purchase multiple gift cards for either personal or business reasons,” the FBI release said. “The gift cards are then used to facilitate the purchase of goods and services which may or may not be legitimate.”
They also caution against websites that only take payment through gift cards or wire transfers, which can give scammers access to “receive illicit funds.”
Banner Health’s Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Marjorie Bessel shared alarming news of the spread of COVID-19 throughout the state at a press conference today despite the hopeful news of the vaccine’s arrival in Arizona.
Bessel remains concerned as the state continues to experience an “exponential growth” of coronavirus with case counts, positivity rates and hospitalizations all increasing.
As the top clinical leader of Arizona’s largest hospital system that’s providing care for almost half of the state’s hospitalized COVID-19 patients, Bessel worries about the continuing surge of the virus, especially during the holiday season.
Within the first two weeks of December, COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state have increased by 93%. This is the same rate experienced throughout the entire month of November, Bessel shared.
According to the chief clinical officer, coronavirus patients comprise 49% of all Banner’s hospitalized patients and 55% of ICU beds. That represents 150% of the hospitals’ peak in a pandemic-free winter season.
Bessel said Banner is also seeing increased deaths from COVID-19, causing the morgues at some hospitals to become so overwhelmed that bodies are being placed in refrigerated trucks.
Closely following guidance from the White House coronavirus task force, Bessel highlighted that Arizona is experiencing a “full resurgence” as it did in its summer surge in cases, but it lacks the mitigation necessary to suppress it.
Bessel expressed support for allowing local authorities to implement mitigation protocols like Tucson and Pima County have done through mandatory curfews and mask mandates.
“We've seen recent actions, as an example, by the mayor of Tucson, Pima County, the mayor of Phoenix and the Phoenix City Council, giving local mayors authority to take mitigation steps and help the state of Arizona's health care system reduce COVID-19 cases in our hospital, which in turn helps all of us by ensuring that the health care we or our families may require will be there in our time of need,” she said.
In a press conference Wednesday, Gov. Doug Ducey made clear he isn’t implementing any further statewide mitigation guidelines as the virus rages through Arizona.
With more than 7,600 new cases reported today, the number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 442,000 as of Friday, Dec. 18, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 1,449 new cases today, has seen 57,250 of the state’s 442,671 confirmed cases.
With 142 new deaths reported today, a total of 7,819 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, including 875 deaths in Pima County, according to the Dec. 18 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide continues to soar as the virus has begun to spread more rapidly, putting stress on Arizona’s hospitals and surpassing July peaks. ADHS reported that as of Dec. 17, 3,931 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, setting a new record. The previous peak of 3,517 hospitalized COVID patients was set on July 13; that number hit a subsequent low of 468 on Sept. 27.
A total of 2,027 people visited emergency rooms on Dec. 17 with COVID symptoms. That number, which hit a new record of 2,166 last week, had previously peaked at 2,008 on July 7; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28.
A total of 915 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care unit beds on Dec. 17. The number of COVID patients in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13 and hit a subsequent low of 114 on Sept. 22.
Pima County under curfew
Pima County's voluntary curfew has now become mandatory.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday to instate a mandatory 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew throughout the county in an attempt to combat Southern Arizona's rising number of coronavirus cases.
Supervisor Steve Christy and outgoing Supervisor Ally Miller, who attended her last board meeting this week, voted against the proposal.
Penalties for a nonessential business found violating curfew range from having their business permit suspended or revoked.
The mandatory curfew will stay in place until coronavirus infection rates drop below 100 per 100,000 people, according to county officials.
The transmission rate in Pima County was 357 people per 100,000 people in the two-week period ending Nov. 29, but Pima County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen expects that number to be significantly higher for the period ending Dec. 13.
The mandatory curfew comes as through the first two weeks of December, COVID-19 cases in the county reached 13,589—2,554 more cases than reported in all of November. Last week saw 70 coronavirus deaths, according to a memorandum from County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
Thursday, December 17, 2020
With more than 5,800 new cases reported today, the number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 435,000 as of Thursday, Dec. 17, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 711 new cases today, has seen 55,801 of the state’s 435,036 confirmed cases.
With 147 new deaths reported today, a total of 7,677 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, including 853 deaths in Pima County, according to the Dec. 17 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide continues to soar upward as the virus has begun to spread more rapidly, putting stress on Arizona’s hospitals and surpassing July peaks. ADHS reported that as of Dec. 16, 3,884 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, setting a new record. The previous peak of 3,517 hospitalized COVID patients was set on July 13; that number hit a subsequent low of 468 on Sept. 27.
A total of 1,920 people visited emergency rooms on Dec. 16 with COVID symptoms. That number, which hit a new record of 2,166 last week, had previously peaked at 2,008 on July 7; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28.
A total of 899 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care unit beds on Dec. 16. The number of COVID patients in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13 and hit a subsequent low of 114 on Sept. 22.
Pima County under curfew
Pima County's voluntary curfew has now become mandatory.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday to instate a mandatory 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew throughout the county in an attempt to combat Southern Arizona's rising number of coronavirus cases.
Supervisor Steve Christy and outgoing Supervisor Ally Miller, who attended her last board meeting this week, voted against the proposal.
Penalties for a nonessential business found violating curfew range from having their business permit suspended or revoked.
The mandatory curfew will stay in place until coronavirus infection rates drop below 100 per 100,000 people, according to county officials.
The transmission rate in Pima County was 357 people per 100,000 people in the two-week period ending Nov. 29, but Pima County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen expects that number to be significantly higher for the period ending Dec. 13.
The mandatory curfew comes as through the first two weeks of December, COVID-19 cases in the county reached 13,589—2,554 more cases than reported in all of November. Last week saw 70 coronavirus deaths, according to a memorandum from County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
Wednesday, December 16, 2020
Gov. Doug Ducey praised the arrival of a COVID-19 vaccine in Arizona at a news conference Wednesday as the substantial spread of the virus rages through the state.
Ducey said 10 healthcare workers, including the Director of the Arizona Department of Health Services Dr. Cara Christ, will be the first people in Arizona to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine later today.
In Pima County, healthcare workers will be able to receive the vaccine at Tucson Medical Center and Banner University Medical Center Thursday.
Vaccine implementation will be phased out with healthcare workers, residents in long-term care facilities and the most vulnerable to COVID-19 receiving the first doses.
The governor said citizens should trust the vaccine the same way the esteemed medical professionals who will be first to take it do.
“[Christ’s] confidence in the vaccine should give all of us confidence in the vaccine,” Ducey said.
According to Ducey, he won’t “skip the line” and will only take the vaccine when the group he falls under in Arizona’s vaccine implementation plan is cleared to do so.
“But when it's my turn, my sleeve will be rolled up and it will be administered,” he said.
Christ shared alarming metrics at the press conference, such as a growing 18% positivity rating of coronavirus for the week of Dec. 6 and 429,219 total cases reported to date in Arizona. COVID-like illness is also increasing, and hospitals are overwhelmed with patients.
In response, the governor announced a disbursement of $15 million to the Department of Health Services to “replenish” the state’s emergency fund and purchase more resources to combat the virus, the governor said.
Although COVID-19 cases are surging and hospitals are inundated with coronavirus patients, Ducey doesn’t plan on creating further statewide mitigation to slow the spread despite many appeals from public health officials to do so.
PHOENIX – Attorney Ehsan Zaffar is leading an initiative to establish a civil rights center at Arizona State University to target inequality in the U.S. To do so, Zaffar envisions a range of products, services and programs – perhaps including Yelp-like reviews of how Arizona companies address social justice issues.
“Inequality is the greatest social, political, economic problem facing this country today,” said Zaffar, a civil rights and civil liberties official with the Department of Homeland Security who will join ASU in January. “I think our country is headed back to a time when institutions were powerless to fix the problems in the country. There’s a lack of trust.”
He hopes the center’s work will help strengthen institutions by encouraging them to be more responsive to the public and to produce more factual information about social justice issues.
Zaffar said his work at the center, which will include fundraising, also could examine how news and social media cover certain communities in ways that affect lawmakers, analyze emergency response times in communities of color and explore the gender pay gap in U.S. companies.
“This just goes to prove that when there is substantial community spread of the virus like we’re experiencing now throughout the county, the virus can get into your homes and places of work any number of ways no matter how vigilant you are being with your precautions,” said County Chief Medical Officer Dr. Francisco Garcia in a press release today.
County investigators are currently working on contact tracing for the source of the outbreak. However, PCHD admits contact tracing will be difficult after dozens of people, many of whom were not wearing masks, entered their building on Dec. 10 to protest recent COVID-19 protection and enforcement actions by the health department.
Cullen is one of more than 300 of the nearly 7,000 Pima County employees who’ve tested positive for coronavirus since February, County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry shared with the Board of Supervisors this week. Nearly 60 county employees tested positive in the last two weeks alone, the release says.
“The effects of this outbreak at the Health Department will be a significant challenge but it is one we are able to handle,” Garcia said in a prepared statement. “We have redundant capacity in staffing and facilities, and this will not affect our ability to continue to our mission protecting public health or the Health Department’s vital role in the struggle to control and end the spread of COVID-19 in Pima County.”
As of Dec. 15, COVID-19 cases in the county had reached 13,589—2,554 more cases than reported in all of November. Last week saw 70 coronavirus deaths, according to a memorandum from County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
With more than 4,800 new cases reported today, the number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 429,000 as of Wednesday, Dec. 16, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 711 new cases today, has seen 54,957 of the state’s 429,219 confirmed cases.
With 108 new deaths reported today, a total of 7,530 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, including 836 deaths in Pima County, according to the Dec. 16 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide continues to soar upward as the virus has begun to spread more rapidly, putting stress on Arizona’s hospitals and surpassing July peaks. ADHS reported that as of Dec. 15, 3,809 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, setting a new record. The previous peak of 3,517 hospitalized COVID patients was set on July 13; that number hit a subsequent low of 468 on Sept. 27.
A total of 1,856 people visited emergency rooms on Dec. 15 with COVID symptoms. That number, which hit a new record of 2,166 last week, had previously peaked at 2,008 on July 7; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28.
A total of 882 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care unit beds on Dec. 15. The number of COVID patients in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13 and hit a subsequent low of 114 on Sept. 22.
Pima County under curfew
Pima County's voluntary curfew has now become mandatory.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 yesterday to instate a mandatory 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew throughout the county in an attempt to combat Southern Arizona's rising number of coronavirus cases.
Supervisor Steve Christy and outgoing Supervisor Ally Miller, who attended her last board meeting yesterday, voted against the proposal.
Penalties for a nonessential business found violating curfew range from having their business permit suspended or revoked.
The mandatory curfew will stay in place until coronavirus infection rates drop below 100 per 100,000 people, according to county officials.
The transmission rate in Pima County was 357 people per 100,000 people in the two-week period ending Nov. 29, but Pima County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen expects that number to be significantly higher for the period ending Dec. 13.
The mandatory curfew comes as in December alone, COVID-19 cases in the county have reached 13,589—2,554 more cases than reported in all of November. Last week saw 70 coronavirus deaths, according to a memorandum from County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
While businesses will now face losing their operating permits if they don't comply with the curfew, it "carries no penalty associated with the individual, as it would be difficult to enforce a curfew against individuals without the cooperation of law enforcement," Huckelberry writes in the memo.
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to instate a mandatory 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew throughout the county in an attempt to combat Southern Arizona's rising number of coronavirus cases.
Supervisor Steve Christy and outgoing Supervisor Ally Miller, who attended her last board meeting today, voted against the proposal.
Penalties for a nonessential business found violating curfew range from having their business permit suspended or revoked.
The mandatory curfew will stay in place until coronavirus infection rates drop below 100 per 100,000 people, according to county officials.
The transmission rate in Pima County was 357 people per 100,000 people in the two-week period ending Nov. 29, but Pima County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen expects that number to be significantly higher for the period ending Dec. 13.
The mandatory curfew comes as in December alone, COVID-19 cases in the county have reached 13,589—2,554 more cases than reported in all of November. Last week saw 70 coronavirus deaths, according to a memorandum from County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
According to the memo, county personnel observed facilities for compliance to safety mitigations, including the previously voluntary curfew, on Dec. 11 and 12.
Of the nearly 400 locations observed, 15% were "seriously noncompliant," the memo says.
While businesses will now face losing their operating permits if they don't comply with the curfew, it "carries no penalty associated with the individual, as it would be difficult to enforce a curfew against individuals without the cooperation of law enforcement," Huckelberry writes in the memo.
Exceptions include:
Emergency response personnel
Traveling to and from work
Attending religious services
Caring for a family member
Seeking medical care
Fleeing dangerous circumstances
Traveling to perform or receive essential functions
This article has been updated with contributions from Nicole Ludden.
