Arizona coronavirus update: 594 deaths, 12,176 confirmed cases

Arizona cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, now exceed 12,100, with 594 known deaths, according to numbers released on Wednesday by the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Arizona’s total identified cases rose to 12,176 on Wednesday, according to the most recent state figures. That’s an increase of 440 confirmed cases, or 3.75%, since Tuesday.

The number of confirmed cases reported each day has risen steadily over the past week as more testing has taken place.

Deaths have also spiked over the past week, although many occurred in previous weeks and are just being added to the system now because of reporting lags and a new death certificate surveillance process.

The number of new deaths reported each day represents the additional known deaths identified by the Health Department that day, but they are often not identified on the actual death date and could have occurred weeks prior.

According to the department’s data, the date with the most deaths in a single day so far is April 20, with 22 deaths.

Maricopa County’s confirmed cases exceed 6,300, according to state numbers.

The number of Arizona cases likely is higher than official numbers because of limits on supplies and available tests. The state announced April 23 that anyone who believes they could be infected can now get tested.

As of Wednesday morning, the state reported death totals from these counties: 281 in Maricopa, 144 in Pima, 58 in Coconino, 42 in Navajo, 26 in Mohave, 20 in Pinal, 12 in Apache, four in Yavapai and three in Yuma.

La Paz County officials reported two deaths and Gila officials reported one death as of Tuesday, although the state site listed the two counties and Cochise County as just having fewer than three deaths. Greenlee, Graham and Santa Cruz counties each reported no deaths.

Yuma County on Thursday reported a child died from COVID-19-related illness. The child had “multiple serious underlying medical conditions,” Yuma County said in a news release. The county said it was the state’s first pediatric death associated with COVID-19.

According to Wednesday’s state update, Pima County reported 1,661 identified cases. Navajo County reported 1,099 cases, while Apache County reported 817, Coconino County reported 772, Pinal County reported 643, Yuma County reported 243, Yavapai County reported 227 and Mohave County reported 213.

Santa Cruz County reported 50 cases, Cochise County reported 43, La Paz County reported 25, Graham County reported 21, Gila County reported 19 and Greenlee County reported two, according to state numbers.

The Navajo Nation had 3,245 identified cases and 103 confirmed deaths as of Tuesday evening.