The 18 deaths announced Saturday mark the highest number of deaths reported in a single day, though it wasn’t immediately clear whether all of the deaths had occurred recently. The previous record was 13 deaths reported Nov. 24, followed closely by the 12 deaths reported Dec. 4.
According to state data, the deaths involved 10 Anchorage residents, plus two people from Kenai and one each from Delta Junction, Wasilla, Utqiagvik, the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, the Bethel Census Area and the Kusilvak Census Area.
In total, 175 Alaskans and one nonresident with COVID-19 have died since the pandemic began here in March, according to the Department of Health and Social Services. Alaska’s overall death rate per capita is one of the lowest in the country, but officials say it’s difficult to compare Alaska to other states because of its vast geography and vulnerable health care system.
After weeks of surging daily case counts, Alaska as of Saturday ranked ninth in the country for average daily cases per capita over the past week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Rising case numbers have translated into increasing hospitalizations and deaths.
Given the large number of cases reported to the department, health officials say there are delays in daily case count reporting. Tallies may at times be an underestimate of the true number of cases in Alaska.
State health officials continue to ask Alaskans to avoid indoor gatherings with non-household members, and have said that most Alaskans who contract the virus get it from a friend, family member or co-worker.
By Saturday, 127 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized in Alaska and another 10 people in hospitals were suspected to be infected with the virus, according to preliminary data. Seventeen people with COVID-19 were on ventilators. There were 32 ICU beds available statewide out of 133 staffed beds, and about 15.6% of the adult patients hospitalized around the state had tested positive for COVID-19.
Of the 527 new cases reported by the state Saturday among Alaska residents, there were 200 in Anchorage, plus 17 in Eagle River and seven in Chugiak; 56 in Bethel; 54 in Fairbanks and 13 in North Pole; 50 in Wasilla, nine in Palmer and one in Willow; 25 in Kodiak; 11 in Utqiagvik; 10 in Kenai, nine in Homer, seven in Soldotna, three in Sterling and one in Seward; four in Juneau; three in Sitka; two in Nome; two in Kotzebue; two in Unalaska; two in Chevak; two in Hooper Bay; one in Cordova; one in Healy; one in Delta Junction; one in Ketchikan; and one in Craig.
Among communities smaller than 1,000 people not named to protect privacy, there were 13 resident cases in the Kusilvak Census Area; five in the Bethel Census Area; three in the southern Kenai Peninsula Borough; two in the Fairbanks North Star Borough; two in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough; two in the North Slope Borough; two in the Yakutat plus Hoonah-Angoon region; one in the northern Kenai Peninsula Borough; one in the Valdez-Cordova Census Area; and one in the Bristol Bay plus Lake and Peninsula boroughs.
Six cases were reported among nonresidents: one in Anchorage, one in Fairbanks, one in Juneau and three identified as unknown.
The statewide test positivity rate was 6% based on a seven-day rolling average. Rates over 5% can indicate inadequate broad testing, as well as increased community transmission.
While people might get tested more than once, each case reported by the state health department represents only one person.
It is not clear how many of the people who tested positive in Saturday’s results were showing symptoms. The CDC estimates about a third of people with coronavirus infections are asymptomatic.