Arizona report on new COVID-19 cases low due to data problem

Superintendent of Public Instruction speaks out amid COVID-19 outbreaks in some Arizona schools

Amid the ongoing rise in COVID-19 cases, health officials say they believe students returning to class are driving up the number of cases. FOX 10's Justin Lum reports.

PHOENIX - Arizona on Tuesday reported far fewer additional COVID-19 cases than normal as state officials cited a data-processing problem.

The problem has been fixed and the state’s coronavirus dashboard on Sept. 1 will report "additions to be much higher than they’d normally be," Department of Health Services interim Director Don Herrington said in a blog post.

The 822 additional cases reported Monday on the dashboard raised the state’s pandemic total to 1,011,923.

Arizona reported 3,247 additional cases on Monday, and the state’s seven-day daily rolling average of new cases was 3,198 as of Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

MORE: Coronavirus in Arizona: Latest case numbers

FILE - Clinicians work on intubating a COVID-19 patient in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital on Aug. 10, 2021 in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

The same processing error affected reporting of COVID-19 deaths, resulting in a one-death subtraction, Herrington said.

The state’s seven-day rolling average of daily deaths was 26.7 as of Sunday.

"The unfortunate trend is that COVID-19 cases and deaths are up since mid-July. In addition, nearly all cases, hospitalizations, and deaths are occurring among those who aren’t fully vaccinated," Herrington said in his blog post.

MORE: Find COVID-19 vaccine locations in your area

In order to protect yourself from a possible infection, the CDC recommends:

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.
Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
Monitor your health daily

Symptoms for coronavirus COVID-19 include fever, coughing, and shortness of breath. These, of course, are similar to the common cold and flu.

Expect a common cold to start out with a sore or scratchy throat, cough, runny and/or stuffy nose. Flu symptoms are more intense and usually come on suddenly, and can include a high fever.

Symptoms of COVID-19 may appear more slowly. They usually include fever, a dry cough and noticeable shortness of breath, according to the World Health Organization. A minority of cases develop pneumonia, and the disease is especially worrisome for the elderly and those with other medical problems such as high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes or heart conditions.

To protect yourself, wash your hands well and often, keep them away from your face, and avoid crowds and standing close to people.

And if you do find yourself showing any of these flu or coronavirus symptoms - don't go straight to your doctor's office. That just risks making more people sick, officials urge. Call ahead, and ask if you need to be seen and where.