New-case tally for state drops to 1,450

The Arkansas Department of Health reported 1,450 new covid-19 cases on Sunday, ending a five-day streak of more than 2,000 daily cases as the statewide death toll neared 3,000.

With 34 newly reported deaths, the total in Arkansas increased to 2,945 on Sunday.

Of the new deaths, 20 were classified as probable and 14 as confirmed, according to the Department of Health.

The number of patients being treated for covid-19 in medical facilities decreased by 14, to 1,057. The number of patients on ventilators rose by four, to 181.

On Sunday afternoon, Gov. Asa Hutchinson highlighted the decrease in new cases compared with the same day last week, as well as the decline in hospitalizations. “We must continue to be diligent and do our part,” he wrote on Twitter.

Most of the new cases reported on Sunday, 1,248, were classified as confirmed based on polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, tests. The remaining 202 cases were classified as probable. Eighteen of the new confirmed cases were from correctional facilities, the Department of Health reported.

Dr. Jennifer Dillaha, the state epidemiologist, said she was encouraged by the fact that new cases were not continuing to accelerate.

She said she continues to hope that during the holidays, “Arkansans will take the steps that they need to prevent further spread.”

Hospitalizations on Sunday were down 31 from a peak of 1,088 on Dec. 2. However, Dillaha said it was too soon “to expect much of a steep decline in hospitalizations because they do lag behind the case numbers.”

In light of the elevated case numbers recently, Dillaha said she did not expect

hospitalizations to decrease significantly in the near future.

Although she said she had not looked at Sunday’s case numbers, Dillaha noted the long list of counties where more than 20 new cases have been reported in the past few days.

“And so that tells me that the community spread in Arkansas is elevated just about everywhere,” Dillaha said.

The implication, she added, “is that you’re not safe in any particular community right now. Everyone needs to be taking precautions to prevent themselves from spreading the illness, as well as taking precautions to prevent themselves from being exposed to it.”

The number of active cases on Sunday declined by 94, to 21,395, marking the end of a four-day streak of record-high numbers of active cases in the state.

New cases were highest in Pulaski County, with 180, followed by 121 new cases in Washington County, 84 in Benton County, 78 in Craighead County and 47 in Saline County, according to the Department of Health.

Results from 11,218 PCR tests were reported on Saturday along with 1,380 antigen tests. So far in December, results from more than 157,400 PCR tests and 31,500 antigen tests have been reported in Arkansas.

Dillaha described strong testing numbers over the past week as a positive sign. “My hope is if we can keep the numbers high for testing, then we will be identifying as many cases as possible,” she said.

Since the start of the pandemic, 185,702 covid-19 cases have been reported in Arkansas.

DEATHS BY COUNTY

According to Department of Health spokesman Gavin Lesnick, four of the deaths reported on Sunday were from October, but the others were more recent.

Five deaths were reported in Benton County, three in Columbia County and two each in Craighead, Garland, Jefferson and Union counties, according to Lesnick.

With 318 deaths, the state’s most populous county, Pulaski, has experienced more than any other. In Benton and Washington counties, 209 and 195 deaths have been reported, respectively, according to the Department of Health’s data.

Additionally, as of Sunday there were nearly 2,300 confirmed or probable active cases in Pulaski County.

Five deaths were reported in Benton County, three in Columbia County and two each in Craighead, Garland, Jefferson and Union counties, according to Lesnick.

SCHOOL CASES

Thirty people entered quarantine and 10 tested positive for the coronavirus between Friday and Sunday in the Little Rock School District, according to the district’s weekend covid-19 report released Sunday.

Seven students and three staff members across various district schools tested positive. Among them were one student and one staff member at Southwest High School and two Central High School students. Nine other students at Central entered quarantine.

At Gibbs Elementary, one student tested positive and 12 others entered quarantine.

In the weekend report, the district noted that Dunbar Middle School will continue all-virtual instruction until Friday.