12 News continues to track the changes with the coronavirus outbreak and vaccination efforts in Arizona with our daily live blog.
Here is the live blog for Tuesday, March 30.
Major updates:
- There have been 841,078 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 16,941 coronavirus-related deaths reported in Arizona as of Tuesday.
- There have been 3,300,877 total vaccines administered as of Tuesday.
- The state does not record how many people have recovered, but Johns Hopkins University estimates the number of people who have recovered.
- You can find COVID-19 testing sites here.
- Go to 12News.com/Vaccine to find more information on the COVID-19 vaccines.
- Scroll down to see how many cases are in each ZIP code and additional information.
COVID-19 cases reported in Arizona on Tuesday
There have been 841,078 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 16,941 coronavirus-related deaths reported in Arizona, according to the state health department data.
That's an increase from the 840,492 confirmed cases and 16,918 coronavirus-related deaths reported on Monday.
A week ago, there were 837,244 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 16,798 deaths reported in Arizona.
LEER EN ESPANOL: Coronavirus en Arizona el 30 de marzo: 586 nuevos casos, 23 muerte se reportan el martes
586 new cases, 23 new deaths reported Tuesday
The Arizona Department of Health Services reported 586 new cases and 23 new deaths on Tuesday.
Tuesday marked the 18th day in a row that the department reported less than 1,000 new cases each day.
According to federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, Arizona’s death roll ranks 13th among the states by total deaths and sixth by deaths per 100,000 population.
The state's coronavirus dashboard indicates that Arizona's COVID-related hospitalizations dropped to 549 as of Monday and that nearly 2.1 million people have received at least one dose. That's roughly 29.1% of the state’s population.
Arizona has administered 3,300,877 total vaccines COVID-19 vaccine doses as of Tuesday.
The department reports the number of new cases on the day the cases were reported to them by counties and hospitals, not on the day when someone was diagnosed with the virus.
There were 12,410 cases reported on the collection date of Jan. 4, the day with the most collected diagnoses so far. The day with the second-most collected diagnoses so far was on Jan. 5, with 11,753 cases. That is subject to change.
Health officials said the day with the highest number of deaths was Jan. 18, when 177 people died. The day with the second-highest number of deaths was Jan. 13, when 172 people died. That is subject to change.
Arizona reached 800,000 coronavirus cases on Feb. 17, 700,000 on Jan. 22, 600,000 on Jan. 9, 500,000 on Dec. 28, 400,000 on Dec. 12, 300,000 on Nov. 23, 200,000 on Aug. 27, 100,000 on July 6 and 50,000 cases on June 21.
The state reached 16,000 coronavirus deaths on on March 2, 15,000 on Feb. 17, 14,000 on Feb. 6, 13,000 on Jan. 29, 12,000 on Jan. 22, 11,000 on Jan. 15, 10,000 on Jan. 9, 9,000 on Jan. 1, 8,000 on Dec. 22, 7,000 on Dec. 9, 6,000 on Nov. 3, 5,000 on Aug. 29, 4,000 on Aug. 6, 3,000 deaths on July 23, 2,000 on July 9 and 1,000 on June 5.
Health officials continued to stress that people should continue social distancing, wearing masks in public, and stay home when possible.
Pima County says Ducey does not have legal authority to ban local COVID-19 guidelines
Pima County officials announced Tuesday that Gov. Doug Ducey does not have legal authority to ban the county from enforcing guidelines to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The Pima County Attorney’s Office wrote in a March 26 letter to County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry that Ducey does not have the legal authority to prevent the county health department from enacting public health measures.
This announcement also meant that the county's mandate for everyone over the age of 5 to wear a face mask over their nose and mouth, unless they have a qualifying exemption or are able to maintain physical distance, remains in effect.
County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen also instructed her health inspectors to continue to enforce the mask mandate at establishments regulated by the health department.
More than a dozen states to open vaccines to all adults
More than a dozen states are set to open COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to all adults this week.
The expansion that began Monday has some health officials worried about whether it will create expectations they can’t possibly meet until vaccine supplies catch up to demand.
Meanwhile, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says she had a feeling of “impending doom” about a potential fourth wave of infections after cases in the U.S. rose 10% over the last week.
During a White House briefing, the CDC director pleaded with Americans not to relax preventative practices such as social distancing and mask-wearing.
The above article is from The Associated Press.
Arizona Senate revokes mask mandate after governor's action
The Republican-controlled Arizona Senate has voted to rescind its mandatory mask policy and the House speaker made the same move on his own authority.
Monday’s Senate vote on the rules designed to limit the spread of the coronavirus came over the impassioned opposition of minority Democrats, who called the move premature and unsafe.
The Legislature's actions came just days after Republican Gov. Doug Ducey blocked cities and counties from continuing to enforce mask requirements.
Arizona health officials on Monday reported 604 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases but no new deaths. The state’s pandemic totals are now above 840,00 cases and 16,918 deaths.
The above article is from The Associated Press.
Pandemic liability shield for Arizona businesses advances
The Arizona House has voted to give businesses, nursing homes and others a broad shield from lawsuits related to COVID-19.
Republicans approved the measure in a 31-29 party-line vote on Monday.
They say businesses struggled during the pandemic and shouldn't have to worry about the potential for frivolous lawsuits.
Democrats say the measure would reward bad actors who flouted health guidance and endangered their workers or the public.
The measure goes back to the Senate, which has already approved it but must sign off on changes made in the House.
The above article is from The Associated Press.
Arizona State University plans a virtual graduation ceremony
Arizona State University is planning a schoolwide virtual graduation ceremony for the Class of 2021 on May 3.
More than 19,000 undergraduate and graduate students are expected to earn degrees.
The graduation ceremony also will include in-person commencement events hosted by individual colleges.
School officials say the in-person events will be limited to graduates and hosted by academic deans.
ASU hasn’t held any kind of in-person graduation ceremony since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic more than a year ago.
The University of Arizona plans to commemorate spring graduates with a series of in-person events May 11-18 while Northern Arizona University is planning a virtual graduation ceremony on April 30.
The above article is from The Associated Press.
Navajo Nation confirms first COVID-19 variant first detected in UK
Navajo Nation officials announced Tuesday that it has confirmed the first case of the COVID-19 variant first detected in the U.K.
The test sample was obtained in the western portion of the Navajo Nation. The variant first detected in the U.K. is currently the most dominant variant in the United States and has been detected in all 50 states.
“We shouldn’t panic, but we should be informed about this new development. There is still much to be learned about this particular variant, but the evidence so far indicates that the U.K. variant is more contagious and is more severe in some cases," Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said in a press release.
"We don’t want to cause panic, but we want to reinforce the need to take all precautions by limiting travel, getting tested if symptoms occur, wearing one or two masks, avoiding medium to large in-person gatherings, practicing social distancing, and washing your hands often."
According to the Navajo Department of Health, the person who tested positive for the variant received the COVID-19 vaccine one month prior to testing positive and was hospitalized and is now recovering at home.
Navajo Nation: No COVID-19 deaths for 2nd consecutive day
The Navajo Nation on Monday reported five new COVID-19 cases, but no additional deaths for the second consecutive day and fifth time in the last nine days.
Tribal health officials say the latest figures bring the total number of cases since the pandemic started to 30,064.
The number of deaths remains 1,246.
The number of infections is thought to be far higher than reported because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick.
The Navajo Nation reservation covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
The above article is from The Associated Press.
Here is the latest information on COVID-19 vaccines in Arizona
The Arizona Department of Health Services said more than 3.3 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered as of Tuesday.
Who can get a COVID-19 vaccine?
The state and Maricopa County has expanded vaccine eligibility to Arizonans 16 and older. Other counties are offering vaccines to people in Phase 1B. Gila County has extended vaccines to some people in Phase 1C and Mohave County opened vaccines to all adults. Learn more about the phases here.
How can I sign up for a COVID-19 vaccine?
You can sign up for a vaccine through the state here or find more information about finding up through the counties here.
Where can I get a COVID-19 vaccine?
There are four locations where the state is administering vaccines: State Farm Stadium, Phoenix Municipal Stadium, Chandler-Gilbert Community College and University of Arizona's Tucson campus. All other locations are run through the individual counties or federal programs.
Where can I find more information on a COVID-19 vaccine?
You can find more vaccine information at 12News.com/Vaccine.
COVID-19 data dashboard now includes vaccine information
The Arizona Department of Health Services updated its COVID-19 data dashboard to include information including vaccination numbers and demographic data.
The new information can be found on the dashboard in the tab right next to the summary tab where daily coronavirus cases, deaths, and testing numbers are updated.
You can see the updated dashboard here.
Arizona health department sets up hotline to report businesses
The Arizona Department of Health Services has set up two ways for people to report local businesses that are not following COVID-19 guidelines.
People can report businesses through a hotline or through an online form:
- Submit a complaint online at www.azhealth.gov/complianceCOVID19
- Calling the COVID-19 Compliance Hotline at 1-844-410-2157
“There’s a role for the public as well: If you believe a business isn’t following these requirements, which were established for the safety of customers, employees, and the broader public, ADHS encourages you to share your concerns so local and state officials can follow up as needed,” AZDHS said in a statement.
Free masks available for some Arizonans
The Arizona Department of Health Services announced that some Arizonans would be able to get free masks from the state.
The department partnered with Hanes to provide free face masks to Arizona’s most vulnerable populations.
Anyone who is part of a vulnerable population (including, but not limited to, individuals with medical conditions or individuals age 65 or older), a student (or parents on behalf of students), school staff member or who may not be able to purchase one is able to get a free mask.
Each other will provide five washable, reusable cloth face masks, one order per household.
The department hopes to give out two million cloth face masks.
Anyone with questions can visit the department's FAQs page or contact Hanes at 1-800-503-6698.
Arizona releases ZIP code locations of coronavirus cases, other data
The Arizona Department of Health Services has released expanded data points regarding coronavirus cases in the state.
The AZDHS website now features the location of confirmed cases in Arizona by zip code.
You can see the current ZIP code map here and can find yours by clicking around or searching for your ZIP code in the top right of the map.
More information on coronavirus cases from Tuesday
There have been 841,078 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 16,941 coronavirus-related deaths reported in Arizona.
That's an increase from the 840,492 confirmed cases and 16,918 coronavirus-related deaths reported on Monday.
There were 586 new cases reported on Tuesday, a decrease from the 604 new cases reported on Monday.
There were 23 new deaths reported on Tuesday, an increase from the zero new deaths reported on Monday.
There were 12,410 cases reported on the collection date of Jan. 4, the day with the most collected diagnoses so far. The day with the second-most collected diagnoses so far was on Jan. 5, with 11,753 cases. That is subject to change.
Health officials said the day with the highest number of deaths was Jan. 18, when 177 people died. The day with the second-highest number of deaths was Jan. 13, when 172 people died. That is subject to change.
In total, 13,460 new diagnostic tests were reported on Tuesday, a decrease from the 19,917 new tests reported on Monday.
There have been a total of 8,508,684 diagnostic tests reported to the state as of Tuesday.
10.8% of those tests have been positive as of Tuesday, down from 10.9% on Monday.
Here's a breakdown of the number of cases reported in each county:
- Maricopa: 524,077
- Pima: 112,562
- Pinal: 49,408
- Coconino: 17,073
- Navajo: 15,653
- Apache: 10,807
- Mohave: 22,093
- La Paz: 2,444
- Yuma: 36,751
- Graham: 5,364
- Cochise: 11,594
- Santa Cruz: 7,812
- Yavapai: 18,334
- Gila: 6,542
- Greenlee: 564
Click on the links below to find more information from each county's health department:
COVID-19 is believed to be primarily spread through coughs or sneezes.
It may be possible for the virus to spread by touching a surface or object with the virus and then a person touching their mouth, nose or eyes, but this is not thought to be the main method of spread, the CDC says.
You should consult your doctor if you traveled to an area currently affected by COVID-19 and feel sick with fever, cough or difficulty breathing.
The best way to prevent COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases is to:
- Wear face coverings while in public.
- Practice social distancing while in public.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently-touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
You can text FACTS to 602-444-1212 to receive more information on the coronavirus and to ask questions.
Coronavirus facts you should know
For the latest news about COVID-19, including doctor responses to questions about the coronavirus, watch our 12 News YouTube Playlist here.