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As vaccination efforts ramp up, experts caution Arizona is reopening too early
Currently, figures show only around 10% of all Arizonans have been fully vaccinated, which is way lower than the 70% needed for community immunity, also known as herd immunity.
PHOENIX (AP) - Arizona health officials on March 14 reported 649 additional COVID-19 cases and seven more deaths as the state’s coronavirus numbers continue to drop to their lowest levels in months.
The latest figures increased the state’s totals to 832,743 cases and 16,553 known deaths since the pandemic started.
Authorities said Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing — an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community — is at a five-month low.
According to Arizona’s coronavirus dashboard, the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations dropped to 814 on Saturday — down from the Jan. 11 pandemic peak of 5,082.
The state also reported fewer than 1,000 additional cases on three of the previous six days while data from Johns Hopkins University indicated that seven-day rolling averages of daily new cases and daily deaths declined over the past two weeks.
The rolling average of new cases declined from 1,487.4 on Feb. 25 to 1,206.9 on Thursday while the rolling average of daily deaths declined from 79.8 to 42 over the same period.
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.
MAP: Arizona Coronavirus cases by zip code
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