Mohave County health officials report 265 new cases of COVID-19

KINGMAN – Another 265 Mohave County residents have been infected with COVID-19, and another Kingman-area resident has died of the disease.

The new cases and death were reported by the Mohave County Department of Public Health on Monday, Dec. 20. The report covered the four-day period from noon on Thursday, Dec. 17 to noon on Monday.

The newly deceased was an adult patient in the 80-89 age bracket. It raised the toll since the beginning of the pandemic to 265 in Kingman, which leads the county in coronavirus deaths.

Of the 265 new cases, 78 were logged in the Kingman medical service area. Twenty-seven of the new local cases were recorded in the age groups over 50 that have accounted for 95% of the deaths in the county. There were 14 new cases ages 50-59, eight ages 60-69 and five ages 70-79.

Another 17 local cases involved children and teens, including 11 ages 11-19 and six ages 0-10. There were also 16 cases ages 30-39, 10 ages 20-29 and eight ages 40-49.

Lake Havasu City suffered the most new cases of the county’s four medical service areas with 88. There were also 83 new cases in the Bullhead City service area, eight in the communities in the Arizona Strip and eight in undetermined locations in the county.

Recent county reports indicate that deaths are rising dramatically, with 49 deaths and 539 cases recorded in the eight-day period between Wednesday, Dec. 8 and Thursday, Dec. 16. That’s nearly twice as many deaths as logged in any seven-day span since the beginning of the pandemic. The county’s switch to a twice-a-week – Mondays and Thursdays – reporting schedule will skew weekly statistics for at least one week. Previously, reports had been issued on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, after being scaled down from daily in the early months of the pandemic.

The number of new virus cases and deaths in the previous week ending at noon on Wednesday, Dec. 8. was 526 new cases and 22 additional deaths. That compares to 416 new cases and four deaths reported in the seven-day period ending at noon on Wednesday, Dec. 1, and 443 new cases and 21 deaths in the week ending Wednesday, Nov. 24.

Mohave County remains a high-transmission area, with the county’s low vaccination rate cited as a primary reason by local health officials.

According to the Arizona Department of Health Services, only 43.4% of eligible county residents have received a COVID-19 vaccine, which have proven effective at preventing the disease and lessening the severity of breakthrough illnesses. That places Mohave far below the 64.4% logged statewide. More than one-third of county residents – 76,304 of about 213,000 – are fully vaccinated.

According to the county’s website, Kingman has suffered the most with 265 coronavirus deaths. It is followed by Bullhead City with 263, Lake Havasu City with 203, Golden Valley with 57, Fort Mohave with 89 and Mohave Valley with 32. The locations of the remaining deaths are not specified by the county on its website.

Broken down by cities and communities, the county has recorded 9,592 cases in Kingman, 8,897 cases in Lake Havasu City, 7,993 in Bullhead City, 2,742 in Fort Mohave, 1,879 in Golden Valley, 1,252 in Mohave Valley and 611 in Beaver Dam/Littlefield/Colorado City. There have also been 231 cases in Topock, 195 in Dolan Springs, 96 in Meadview and 80 in Yucca. The locations of the remaining cases are not specified.

The age of the average COVID-19 victim in the county is 72.4 years, while the average patient is 45.4 years old. The case fatality rate in the county is 2.9%, meaning 29 of every 1,000 individuals who have contracted the virus have died. Approximately 16% of Mohave County residents are known to have been infected.

County health officials have logged 34,319 coronavirus cases since the first local case was reported on March 24, 2020, while the Arizona Department of Health Services has recorded 38,046 cases in the county. The county counts 983 deaths, while the state reports 1,133.

“The county only reports confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths, while the state reports probables as well. Therefore, the county’s numbers and those from the state are not the same,” the county wrote in a recent news release, explaining the discrepancy between state and local figures.

According to county health officials, 28,978 county residents are known to have recovered from the disease since the beginning of the pandemic.

Daily testing data from AZDHS for Monday, Dec. 20 revealed 127 new cases from 401 tests for a positivity rate of 32%.

The positivity rate was 24% (121/499) on Monday, Dec. 13; 11% (92/812) on Tuesday, Dec. 14; 11% (130/1,167 on Thursday, Dec. 16; 20% (148/726) on Friday, Dec. 17; and 22% (95/434) on Sunday, Dec. 19.

Since the beginning of the pandemic 324,327 tests have been conducted on county residents and 12.4% have been positive, according to AZDHS.

Statewide on Tuesday, Dec. 21 AZDHS was reporting 223 additional deaths and 2,395 new cases from 20,953 tests for a positivity rate of 11%. More than 1,341,000 Arizonans have contracted the virus and 23,742 have died.

Nationwide, Johns Hopkins University of Medicine was reporting more than 51 million confirmed cases and 807,974 deaths the morning of Tuesday, Dec. 21. The nation achieved another dubious milestone by exceeding the 800,000 mark.

Globally, Johns Hopkins was reporting more than 5.3 million deaths from more than 275 million confirmed cases on Tuesday, Dec. 21.

The county noted that COVID-19 reports will only be issued on Mondays and Fridays in the future, after the board of supervisors decided to reduce the frequency from daily and then three per week down to twice a week.

Also, the news release reported that there have been no cases of the worrisome new omicron virus variant logged in the county. The health department is monitoring the situation.

County health officials also reported that they are “aware of the omicron variant and are monitoring the situation.” The coronavirus variant surfaced in southern Africa, and features dozens of new mutations which appear to be more transmittable than previous versions of the virus and could be more resistant to existing vaccines, although the verdict is still out. It has now spread to dozens of nations, and about 40 states in the U.S.

“We are expecting more specific information, clarity and guidance from the CDC (federal Centers for Disease Control and prevention soon. We will share it with the public when it’s made available,” the county wrote.

Vaccines are readily available at area pharmacies, physician offices and the Kingman Regional Medical Center COVID Services office at the corner of Stockton Hill Road and Detroit Avenue. Treatments for COVID19 are also now available.

Residents age 5 and up can now be vaccinated, and booster shots are available for all persons age 18 and older if it’s been six months since they received their second Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or two months since they’ve received the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. The Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are recommending that Americans be inoculated with the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, due to the slim possibility that blood clotting could result from taking the J&J vaccine.

To curtail virus spread, public health officials recommend that the unvaccinated maintain a distance of at least 6 feet from others, wash their hands thoroughly and frequently, and wear a face covering when social distancing isn’t possible.

For some patients, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, or no symptoms at all. For others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. Some individuals with the virus, including those who have been fully vaccinated, can exhibit no symptoms, but are still capable of transmitting the disease.

The Kingman medical service area includes Kingman, New-Kingman/Butler, Chloride, Valentine, Meadview, Wikieup, Yucca, White Hills, Hackberry, Peach Springs, Valle Vista and Oatman.