Bella Vista reports 71 new covid-19 cases

BELLA VISTA — The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement reports 71 new covid-19 cases in the city for the week ending Nov. 16, bringing the city’s total to 506.

This increase is just under the previous week’s record-high of 74 new cases in the city since the Little Rockbased health policy center started reporting case numbers for individual cities in August.

The organization also reported 333 new cases in Bentonville for the same time period, bringing the city’s total to 1,635, while nearby Rogers saw 444 new cases, for a total of 4,401 known infections.

The Arkansas Department of Health reports 9,558 total cases with 8,696 recoveries and 130 confirmed deaths for Benton County as a whole.

In nearby Washington County, the department reports 12,484 total cases, with 11,273 recoveries and 151 confirmed deaths.

Across the state line, the McDonald County, Mo., Health Department reports a total of 1,546 known cases in the county as of Nov. 22, with 22 new cases that day. The department reports 17 covid-19 deaths in the county.

As of Nov. 22, the Centers for Disease Control reports 12,028,081 total cases nationwide, an increase of 184,591 cases in a single day.

The CDC reports 255,076 covid-19 deaths nationwide.

City offices remain closed until 2021.

A mask mandate issued by Gov. Asa Hutchinson on July 20 remains in effect, though Hutchinson has ceased providing daily updates, citing improvements in informational channels available to the public.

The mandate, issued via executive order, requires individuals to wear masks in indoor and outdoor settings where individuals are likely to come within 6 feet of non-household members or potentially face a fine of $100 to $500.