(08/12/20) 70 new cases in state, 44 in county

The following statistics were shared Wednesday, Aug. 12, at Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s daily COVID-19 news conference in Monticello and posted on the Arkansas Department of Health’s (ADH) website:

• 51,114 total confirmed cases, up 703 from 50,411 on Tuesday. 
• 6,725 active cases, down 122 from Tuesday.
• 43,816 recoveries, up 818 from Tuesday.
• 573 deaths, up seven from Tuesday.
• 486 cases requiring hospitalization, down 21 from Tuesday.
• 113 cases requiring a ventilator, down three from Tuesday.  
• 1,115 cumulative cases in Garland County up 44 from Tuesday.  
• 244 active cases in Garland County, up 20 from Tuesday.  
• 854 recoveries in Garland County, up 24 from Tuesday. 
• 17 deaths in Garland County, no change from Tuesday.  

In the past 24 hours, the number of new cases in Arkansas was 703, with 679 from the community and 24 from correctional facilities. Hutchinson shared the counties with highest number of new cases in the past 24 hours, which included Pulaski with 78, Logan with 47, Sebastian with 43, Garland with 42, Jefferson with 33 and Pope with 30. Other counties with more than 20 new cases included Washington, Craighead, Mississippi, Crawford and Crittenden. 

The number of tests completed in the past 24 hours was 4,401.

A graph of the growth rate of new cases by public health region between Aug. 2-8 showed that the Northeast has the highest percentage increase at above 20%. The Southeast came in second, and the governor said that 44% of the cases from this region were from correctional facilities. The Southwest and Central regions were approximately the same at around 12%. Another graph showing the percentage of growth of new cases by age group in the Southeast region had the 18-24 age group at the highest percentage at just above 20%, the 0-17 group was the next highest at around 17-18%, followed by the 45-64 group at around 16%. 

Hutchinson announced that today he is signing a letter of intent “with the Rockefeller Foundation and other states to work as a consortium of states to enhance the buying power of states with our commercial labs to strengthen our place in the marketplace to give them confidence that they can expand, that they know the demand is there because the states have committed to that demand.”