Arizona attributes increase in COVID-19 cases to reporting problem ‘

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Arizona reported its highest daily number of COVID-19 infections in four months on Wednesday, but public health officials attributed the increase to an “electronic reporting problem” that had driven the numbers down on both days previous ones.

The 1,945 cases reported on Wednesday were the largest daily increase since 2,276 infections reported on March 5, at the end of the winter wave, according to data from the state’s Coronavirus Dashboard. The rise follows daily case reports of 122 and 345 on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

The reporting system had a “bug” that prevented results from including some case reports over the past two days, Department of Health Services spokesman Steve Elliot said in an email. The problem is resolved, he said.

Elliot also pointed out that single-day additions “don’t represent a trend.”

However, the spike in infections came after a gradual increase in the number of new daily confirmed cases statewide, a trend reported nationwide due to the rapidly spreading delta variant, delayed vaccination rates and July 4th rallies.

Arizona’s seven-day average of new daily cases fell from 510 on June 28 to 571 on Monday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Will Humble, executive director of the Arizona Public Health Association, said it was undeniable that the number of cases was on the rise.

“This could be the start of an exponential oscillation,” said Humble, who headed the State Department of Health Services.

He believes there will be a potential of up to 1,500 new cases a day later this summer. However, that shouldn’t translate to more hospitalizations and deaths, Humble said. About half of the state’s eligible population is vaccinated.

Hospitalizations related to the virus increased slightly, with 669 COVID-19 patients occupying hospital beds on Tuesday. Those hospitalizations in Arizona have typically ranged between 500 and 600 over the past two months, according to the state’s Scoreboard.

Arizona also reported 21 deaths on Wednesday. The state has recorded 903,851 cases and 18,076 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Humble said it was becoming evident that virtually all virus deaths involved unvaccinated people.

“You can choose to be vaccinated or choose to be infected,” Humble said.

More than 6.6 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in Arizona to date. More than 3.6 million people have received at least one dose. More than 3.2 million people have received both doses.

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