Arkansas COVID-19 cases increased by 4,362 over the last seven days, according to the Arkansas Department of Health website update on Tuesday. This is a bit higher than the the 3,410 cases reported in the previous 7 day period.
The state moved to a weekly report a few weeks ago instead of daily reports due in part to the rapid decline of cases recently. The last week's count averages to about 623 new cases per day in the state, up a bit from 487 last week.
Some of the recent rise in new cases reported is due to a a backlog of cases being added to the tally from previous months, state epidemiologist Mike Cima told the Arkansas Democrat Gazette this week. For example, Cima told the paper that about 54% of the 607 cases added to Tuesday's totals were from tests performed during January and February.
As a result, though more cases are added to the totals this week, active cases remain low. There are 1,499 cases of COVID-19 considered active in the state, which includes those that have tested positive by both PCR and antigen testing methods. That number is down from the 1,810 active cases reported last Tuesday.
In Northwest Arkansas, the ADH dashboard currently lists 87 active cases in Washington County and 103 in Benton County.
Hospitalizations fell by 77 over that same period, bringing the total number of patients hospitalized in the state to 139.
State officials also announced 156 new deaths in the past week, bringing the total number of Arkansans who have died as a result of the pandemic to 11,127.
There are currently 36 patients on ventilators statewide, down 3 over the last week.
There were 21,097 PCR tests and 10,195 antigen tests announced Tuesday.
The new cases bring the total cumulative count in Arkansas to 831,698.
The top counties for new cases over the last seven days were Washington (461), Craighead (385), and Pulaski (276).
Arkansas is averaging 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 34 percent over the last 14 days. That increase could be accounted for by the backlog of cases from January and February being added this week, however.
The state announced that 8,156 additional doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, bringing the total number of doses given by the state to 3,977,105. The state lists 371,176 people as partially immunized, and 1,575,800 individuals as fully immunized.
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.
