Alaska reports 21 new COVID-related deaths, 2,264 new cases over last two days

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Alaska reported a total of 2,264 new cases among both residents and nonresidents on Wednesday, along with 21 new COVID-19-related deaths.

The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services reported 2,264 new cases on Wednesday over the last two days — 2,238 among residents and 26 among nonresidents. The department reported 874 total cases on Monday and 1,390 total cases on Tuesday, and 9,001 cases have been recorded over the last seven days.

However, during the week of Feb. 2-Feb. 8, the state has seen a 36% decrease in case volume compared to the previous seven days.

Related: Alaska reports 3,082 COVID cases over the weekend, continuing downward trend

All of the 21 COVID-related deaths reported by the state on Wednesday were among Alaska residents. There have now been 1,081 COVID-related deaths of Alaska residents and 33 among nonresidents. The state recently announced that they would only report COVID-related deaths on Wednesdays.

According to the state health department, the 21 people who died ranged in age from their 30s to one person who was over 90. Among those deaths were nine Anchorage residents, five Wasilla residents, two Palmer residents, two people from the Nome Census Area, one person from Fairbanks, one from Ketchikan and one from the northern Kenai Peninsula Borough.

Hospitalizations from COVID-19 have slightly dropped since the state last reported data on Monday. There are currently 119 COVID-related hospitalizations, accounting for 12% of the population of people in Alaska hospitals. There are six patients who require the use of a ventilator and 29 available adult intensive care unit beds statewide.

Read more: Alaskan truck drivers rally to oppose COVID-19 vaccine mandates for US-Canada border crossings

Alaska’s rate of new cases continues to fall, but Alaska remains the state with the highest rate of new cases per 100,000 people over the last week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Alaska ranks behind American territories Guam, Palau and the Northern Mariana Islands, but above all other states with a rate of 1,479.6.

There are currently 69.3% of all Alaska residents and military members who have had at least one dose of vaccine, 61.9% who have completed their primary series and 26.1% who have received booster doses.

The state health department's tracking of COVID-19 variants over time. — The state health department's tracking of COVID-19 variants over time.(Alaska DHSS)

According to the CDC, both the older COVID-19 variant delta and the more recent omicron are listed as Variants of Concern by the CDC, but omicron has now accounted for nearly all COVID-19 cases across the U.S.

“Omicron is predicted to be greater than 99% in all HHS regions,” the CDC said.

In Alaska, weeks after a prediction from State Epidemiologist Dr. Joe McLaughlin, graph data from the state shows that omicron overtook delta around Dec. 19 and now accounts for nearly all COVID-19 cases across the state.

Of the 2,264 COVID-19 cases reported over the last two days, 2,238 of them were identified among Alaska residents of the following communities:

Of the 26 additional nonresident cases reported by the state, six are in Anchorage.

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with additional information.

Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved.