The Arkansas Department of Health announced that COVID-19 cases in Arkansas increased by 270 on Monday.
State officals also announced 5 new deaths, bringing the total number of deaths in the state as a result of the pandemic to 8,620.
Hospitalizations were up by 19, bringing the total number of patients hospitalized in the state to 333.
There are currently 62 patients in the state on ventilators, down one from the day previous.
There are 5,444 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 398 active cases in Washington County and 581 in Benton County.
There were 2,181 PCR tests and 310 antigen tests announced Monday.
The new cases bring the total cumulative count in Arkansas to 524,440 since the pandemic began.
The top counties for new cases on Monday were Benton (33), Pulaski (28), and Sebastian (24).
Fayetteville Public Schools are out this week, but the school dashboard on Friday, Nov. 19 showed no new positive cases, for a total of seven positive cases currently active in the district. There are 47 students currently in quarantine, and six of those are quarantining due to probable close contact at school. The district announced one new positive case among staff, for a total of two active positive staff cases. Three staff members are currently in quarantine or isolation, according to the district's dashboard.
Arkansas is averaging 647 new cases per day, or 21 per 100,000 residents over the last two weeks. According to the New York Times COVID-19 tracker, cases in the state are up by 49% over the last 14 days.
The state announced that 2,812 additional doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, bringing the total number of doses given by the state to 4,370,110. The state lists 317,375 as partially immunized, and 1,431,543 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 from 5 through 15 years of age and for the administration of a third dose in certain immunocompromised individuals, officials announced.
Booster doses are available to all Arkansans who had their second Pfizer or Moderna shot at least six months ago, or their first Johnson & Johnson shot at least two months ago.
The CDC recently authorized vaccines for children aged 5-11 as well. Here's more info about those.
All Arkansans ages 5 and older are currently eligible for a vaccine. Those who need assistance locating a vaccine can call 1-800-985-6030.
