The Arkansas Department of Health announced that COVID-19 cases in Arkansas increased by 2,481 on Thursday.
The state also announced 27 new deaths on Thursday, bringing the total number of deaths in the state as a result of the pandemic to 7,169.
Hospitalizations were down by 15, bringing the total number of patients hospitalized in the state to 1,194.
There are currently 315 patients in the state on ventilators, down five from the day previous.
There are 19,714 cases of COVID-19 considered active in the state, which includes those that have tested positive by both PCR and antigen testing methods. The ADH dashboard currently lists 1,550 active cases in Washington County and 1,361 in Benton County.
There were 10,440 PCR tests and 2,109 antigen tests announced Thursday.
The new cases bring the total cumulative count in Arkansas to 469,977 since the pandemic began.
The top counties for new cases on Thursday were Benton (210), Washington (204), and Pulaski (152).
Fayetteville Public Schools are reporting COVID-19 cases in their district as well. The school dashboard on Wednesday showed 15 new positive cases, for a total of 64 positive cases currently active in the district. There are 226 students currently in quarantine, and 52 of those are quarantining due to probable close contact at school. The district announced one new positive cases among staff, for a total of 14 active positive staff cases. Twenty staff members are currently in quarantine or isolation, according to the district's dashboard.
Arkansas is averaging 1,674 new cases per day, or 55 per 100,000 residents over the last two weeks. The state is currently ranked 36th among states in the per 100,000 category over that time, according to the New York Times COVID-19 tracker. Cases in the state are down by 25% over the last 14 days.
The state announced that 13,278 additional doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, bringing the total number of doses given by the state to 2,775,485. The state lists 320,403 as partially immunized, and 1,265,882,620 individuals as fully immunized. The FDA recently announced it had given full approval for the Pfizer vaccine for anyone 16 and older. The vaccine also continues to be available under emergency use authorization (EUA), including for individuals 12 through 15 years of age and for the administration of a third dose in certain immunocompromised individuals, officials announced.
All Arkansans ages 12 and older are currently eligible for a vaccine. Those who need assistance locating a vaccine can call 1-800-985-6030.
