The Arkansas Department of Health reported 14 new COVID-19 cases in Union County Friday, bringing the cumulative total of cases identified locally to 3,661.
The number of probable cases, determined by positive antigen (rapid) tests, decreased by one Friday to total 843; an ADH spokesperson previously told the News-Times that a reduction in the number of cases reported could be due to their being moved to another county after more information about the case was established.
There were 14 new confirmed cases added Friday to their local total, which reached 2,818. Confirmed cases are determined by positive PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests.
Active cases grew to 53 Friday, up eight from Thursday; they represented 1.4% of all the cases identified locally and included 40 confirmed cases and 13 probable cases. There were 3,506 Union County residents considered recovered from the virus Friday, up five from Thursday.
Only the El Dorado School District was listed as having more than five active cases among students and staff in a report on COVID cases in educational institutions produced by the ADH on Feb. 25. According to the report, there were seven active cases and a total of 294 cases, 91 in staff and faculty and 191 in students, had been identified in the ESD.
No new local deaths attributable to the virus were reported on Friday. A total of 102 deaths caused by COVID-19 have been recorded in Union County. There were 87 people hospitalized Friday in the Southwest hospital region of the state, where Union County is located, including 35 in intensive care units and 11 on ventilator support.
The ADH reported 18 new negative test results returned Friday from Union County. Since the state began testing for the virus, 29,471 COVID-19 test results have returned from the county, including 25,810 negatives, indicating an overall local positivity rate of 12.4%.
Arkansas added 516 new COVID-19 cases Friday to its cumulative total, which grew to 318,638. The cases in the state included 251,711 confirmed cases, up 412 from Thursday, and 66,927 probable cases, up 104 from Thursday.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson held a brief press conference Friday, where he announced the extension of his COVID-19 public health emergency declaration and the state’s mask mandate through March 31.
He also announced that many public health directives affecting businesses were to be downgraded to “guidances,” which are not enforceable by law, and, should the state meet certain public health goals with regard to COVID-19 cases, the mask mandate will also be lifted on March 31. Some executive orders related to public health and the pandemic will remain in effect so long as the emergency declaration does, Hutchinson said.
“The reason we are making this announcement today … is that it is necessary, and we still need to have the items in place. But we have made progress,” Hutchinson said.
The directives that have changed to guidances cover everything from large indoor gatherings to athletic and artistic performances to restaurants and other small businesses’ capacity and distancing limits. A full list is available on the ADH website in the COVID-19 section under the “Guidances” header. An ADH spokesperson noted that the department will still review event plans and consult with event planners if they would like the department’s help, although it is no longer required.
“Businesses have adjusted and made changes to their business model in the interest of public health and we’ve seen a steady decline in cases,” Hutchinson said. “Also, we’ve had increased public education, so the public knows exactly what is needed to stop the spread of the virus. They know where they can go safely, where they can’t go safely and they can make those judgments.”
Hutchinson and ADH Secretary Dr. Jose Romero emphasized that changing the directives to guidelines shouldn’t trigger a change in behavior from Arkansans.
“I think that merits bearing in mind … that this does not change, should not change the behavior of the citizens of Arkansas. That is, we will still need to wear our masks, maintain social distancing, wash our hands,” Romero said. “Those are going to be essential in keeping this pandemic that’s affecting our state under control.”
Romero also said it will take vaccinating enough Arkansans to truly get the pandemic under control.
Hutchinson said the criteria for lifting the mask mandate requires a seven-day rolling average of the positivity rate of combined PCR and antigen tests statewide to be below 10% with an average of 7,500 specimens tested each day throughout the week; if there are fewer than 7,500 specimens tested on average, the state will also consider whether there are fewer than 750 COVID-related hospitalizations statewide.
“We have an opportunity to see where our progress is, and if we meet these benchmarks, then the mask mandate will be lifted on March 31,” he said.
The executive orders still in effect are available to read on the governor’s website. They range from allowing Medicaid reimbursement for telehealth to business liability to protection to allowing for remote learning, among other measures.
The number of active cases in the state dropped again Friday by 241 to reach 4,479; they represented 1.4% of all the cases identified in Arkansas and included 2,994 confirmed cases and 1,485 probable cases. There were 308,725 Arkansans considered recovered from the virus Friday, up 747 from Thursday.
The deaths of 10 Arkansans that resulted from COVID-19 were reported Friday, bringing the state’s death toll to 5,407, indicating a state COVID mortality rate of 1.7%. There were 504 Arkansans hospitalized Friday due to the virus, including 184 in ICUs and 98 on ventilator support.
The ADH reported 8,083 new COVID-19 test results returned Friday and 248,489 results returned so far this month. Since the state began testing for the virus, 3,078,412 results have returned to the ADH, including 2,748,155 negatives, indicating an overall positivity rate for the state of 10.4%.
As of Friday, approximately 602,659 doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID vaccines had been administered in Arkansas. The state has been allocated 950,050 doses, according to the ADH.
At 3:15 p.m. Friday, Johns Hopkins University reported 28,461,935 COVID-19 cases in the United States. Data wasn’t available then on the number of U.S. residents considered recovered from the virus or the number of active cases in the country. There had been 509,734 deaths attributable to the virus reported in the U.S. by Friday afternoon, indicating a national COVID mortality rate of 1.8%.
Johns Hopkins reported 113,264,928 COVID-19 cases worldwide Friday afternoon. There were 63,893,484 people considered recovered from the virus then, leaving 46,858,131 cases — 41.4% — active around the world. There had been 2,513,313 deaths attributable to the virus reported by Friday afternoon, indicating a global COVID mortality rate of 2.2%.