Tracking COVID-19 in Alaska: 4 new deaths and 577 infections reported Wednesday

Alaska on Wednesday reported four deaths and 577 new cases of COVID-19, according to the state Department of Health and Social Services.

The deaths, which occurred recently, involved an Anchorage woman in her 70s, a man from the Yakutat and Hoonah-Angoon area in his 80s, a Kenai man in his 70s and a Soldotna man in his 80s, the state health department said.

Separately, Arctic Slope Native Association on Wednesday reported the death of an Utqiagvik resident, the second for someone with COVID-19 in the North Slope Borough.

After weeks of surging daily infection counts, Alaska as of Wednesday ranked seventh in the country for new 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.

State health officials continue to ask Alaskans to avoid indoor gatherings with non-household members and report that most Alaskans who contract the virus get it from a friend, family member or co-worker.

In total, 149 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 state officials say it’s difficult to compare Alaska to other states because of its vast geography and vulnerable health care system.

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Last week included the state’s highest ever daily case tally, with 933 reported Saturday. As infections continue to rise, so does concern from officials about the potential for the state’s hospitals becoming overwhelmed as they continue to see major staffing issues.

By Wednesday, 150 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized in Alaska and another 13 people in hospitals were suspected to be infected with the virus, according to preliminary data. Nineteen people with COVID-19 were on ventilators. There were 31 ICU beds available statewide out of 129 staffed beds, putting that capacity marker into the red level at over 75% full. Just over 17% of the adult patients hospitalized around the state had tested positive for COVID-19.

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Of the 573 new cases reported by the state Wednesday among Alaska residents, there were 192 in Anchorage, plus 18 in Eagle River and two in Chugiak; 59 in Fairbanks and 17 in North Pole; 58 in Wasilla, 23 in Palmer, three in Big Lake and one in Willow; 31 in Kodiak; 28 in Utqiagvik; 13 in Soldotna, 10 in Kenai, nine in Homer, four in Nikiski, two in Seward, two in Sterling and one in Anchor Point; 15 in Bethel; six in Delta Junction; three in Juneau; two in Ketchikan; two in Healy; two in Hooper Bay; one in Cordova; one in Kotzebue; and two in unidentified regions of the state.

Among communities smaller than 1,000 people not named to protect privacy, there were 39 resident cases in the Kusilvak Census Area; 11 in the Bethel Census Area; six in the northern Kenai Peninsula Borough; three in the North Slope Borough; two in the Denali Borough; two in the Northwest Arctic Borough; one in the Southeast Fairbanks Census Area; one in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area; and one in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.

Four cases were reported among nonresidents: two in Unalaska, one in Anchorage, and one in an unidentified part of the state.

High case counts continued in the Yukon-Kuskokwim region, though regional health authorities said new cases reported Wednesday didn’t necessarily show it.

Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corp. reported 33 new cases in the region — including 10 each in the villages of Kotlik and Pilot Station — after reporting 68 and 76 new cases the prior two days. Health officials posted an update saying they haven’t gotten test results back from Alaska Native Medical Center or state public health labs in the past 24 hours due to “limited staff capacity, the volume of testing occurring statewide, and offline equipment.”

Yukon-Kuskokwim health officials expect regional case increases to continue as lab results come in.

Another place seeing significant levels of transmission is the Kodiak Island Borough, where about 13,000 people live on the state’s largest island. Nearly 600 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the borough since the pandemic began in March, many of them in recent weeks, according to local officials. Twenty residents were hospitalized as of this week and two have died.

Case numbers began rising in late October and continued to surge as residents headed indoors and gathered during the holidays, according to Bianca Clark, a public information officer at the Kodiak Emergency Operations Center.

Emergency officials on Monday morning began mandating mask-wearing and limited capacity to 25% occupancy at local businesses, restaurants, bars and churches. The community risk level is now at “red” due to rising COVID-19 numbers and high levels of local transmission.

“There’s probably some in our community that felt that we waited too long,” Clark said. “And then there’s others in the community that feel this virus just needs to play itself out and people should be able to behave however they choose to.”

Many businesses have already started taking precautionary measures, she said. The new requirements helps them enforce those rules, and call for police assistance if customers get unruly.

Kodiak Island Borough’s test positivity rate was as of Wednesday was 10.33%, almost twice the statewide average of 6.63%, based on a seven-day rolling average. Rates over 5% can indicate inadequate broad testing, as well as high levels of 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 Wednesday’s results were showing symptoms. The CDC estimates about a third of people with coronavirus infections are asymptomatic.

— Zaz Hollander