UTAH, Sept. 16, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah Department of Health said Wednesday there have been 747 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours and one new death.
The total number of deaths is now 437. The person who died was a man, older than 85, a Salt Lake County resident, and was not hospitalized at time of death.
State epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn issued the following statement Wednesday:
“We learned from our experience this summer that wearing masks and practicing physical distancing, along with staying home when we’re sick and washing our hands regularly, can help slow the spread of COVID-19 in our communities.
“We are currently experiencing a new spike in cases, similar to what we saw earlier in the summer. It’s time to reiterate the importance of people taking these preventive measures. By wearing masks, physically distancing, and staying home if we are sick, we can prevent unnecessary death and illness.”
The 747 new cases brings total lab-confirmed cases to 59,747.
Tests performed since the beginning of the outbreak number 729,731, with 4,119 of those performed in the past 24 hours.
The rolling seven-day average for positive tests is 585 per day. The rolling seven-day average for percent of positive laboratory tests is 11.1%.
Currently, 115 people are hospitalized for COVID-19. Total hospitalizations from the beginning of the outbreak are 3,381.
Patients classified as recovered, defined as still living three weeks after diagnosis, number 49,728. 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.
