UDOH: COVID-19 spike observed in college-aged adults in Utah County

Photo illustration: Intermountain Healthcare

UTAH, Sept. 14, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah Department of Health said Monday there is a spike in COVID-19 cases being observed in college-aged adults in Utah County.

UDOH’s Monday news release that contains case counts also includes the following statement from state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn:

“We are experiencing a clear upward trend in case counts right now,” Dunn said. “This trend is being driven, in large part, by an increase in cases among college-aged young adults in Utah County.

“Since last Friday, 39% of all new cases have come from Utah County, this despite the fact that Utah County’s population represents just 20% of the state’s population. Most of these cases are among 14-24 year olds, and the majority of those are among college-aged young adults.

“Colleges across the state, and specifically in Utah County, have acted proactively to implement solid prevention measures on their campuses. They need help from their students to act responsibly while off campus. What students do off campus has a direct impact on a school’s ability to safely operate their campus.”

Dunn reiterated that people should avoid large, indoor gatherings where physical distancing is not possible, wear face coverings in public, stay home if they are sick, and they need to follow quarantine and isolation instructions from public health.

There have been 563 new lab confirmed cases in the past 24 hours and three new deaths.

The deceased are:

  • A male, between 65-84, Duchesne County resident, not hospitalized at time of death
  • A male, between 65-84, Salt Lake County resident, hospitalized at time of death
  • A male, between 25-44, Utah County resident, hospitalized at time of death

The total number of deaths now stands at 436. The 563 new cases brings total lab-confirmed cases to 58,438.

Tests performed since the beginning of the outbreak number 721,682, with 4,809 of those performed in the past 24 hours.

The rolling seven-day average for positive tests is 487 per day. The rolling seven-day average for percent of positive laboratory tests is 9.8%

Currently, 134 people are hospitalized for COVID-19. Total hospitalizations from the beginning of the outbreak are 3,338.

Patients classified as recovered, defined as still living three weeks after diagnosis, number 48,934. It is common for COVID-19 patients to die more than three weeks after diagnosis.

See the chart below for the COVID numbers broken down by the area of the state.

Total Number of Lab-Confirmed COVID-19 Cases Living in Utah

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