COVID-19 cases rise in ASU community

Arizona State recorded a small percentage increase in known coronavirus cases from a week ago

Jernej Furman

The ADHS reported 2,781 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday.

The newest weekly update from Arizona State University — published Tuesday night — shows a total of 312 active COVID-19 cases among students and faculty.

The university’s latest COVID-19 Management Strategy & Data Update indicates there are 29 known positive tests and a further 283 within the school’s expansive student body. This total represents an increase of roughly one percent from the previous week’s published data, in which there were 306 total reported positives between faculty and students.

The vast majority of those students who returned positive tests are living off-campus in metro Phoenix. Thirty-three students are currently isolating on the Tempe campus, which is home to nearly 12,000 ASU students. Meanwhile, a further seven students are in isolation on the Downtown Phoenix, Polytechnic, and West campuses.

The Arizona Department of Health Services recorded 2,222 new COVID-19 cases statewide on Wednesday, with 26 deaths and over 6,300 new vaccine doses administered. Arizona is around the national average in terms of cases on a per-100,000 basis — New York Times data indicates that the state is 25th in the nation with 45 positive tests for every 100,000 residents.

According to the same data, there has been a two percent increase in the number of Arizonans hospitalized with COVID-19 over the past two weeks. The state’s 49 percent vaccination rate is below the 53 percent national average.