701 new confirmed/probable cases added today

The following statistics were shared Wednesday, Sept. 16, at Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s COVID-19 news conference in Batesville and posted on the Arkansas Department of Health’s (ADH) website:

• 70,731 total confirmed cases, up 606 from 70,125 on Tuesday.
• 1,327 total probable cases, up 95 from Tuesday.
• 5,572 active cases, down 147 from Tuesday.
• 64,145 recoveries, up 730 from Tuesday.
• 1,010 deaths, up seven from Tuesday.
• 139 probable deaths, added for the first time in today’s report.
• 387 cases requiring hospitalization, down two from Tuesday.
• 65 cases requiring a ventilator, down three from Tuesday. 
• 1,671 cumulative cases in Garland County, up 18 from Tuesday.
• 121 active cases in Garland County, down six from Tuesday.
• 1,503 recoveries in Garland County, up 17 from Tuesday.
• 47 deaths in Garland County, up seven from Tuesday.

In the past 24 hours, the number of positive PCR tests added today in Arkansas was 606, with 597 from the community and nine from correctional facilities. There were 95 new probable cases added from positive antigen test results; a total of 529 antigen tests were received in the past 24 hours. 

The number of PCR tests completed in the past 24 hours was 6,360. 

Counties with the number of new cases higher than 20 in the past 24 hours include Washington with 65, Pulaski with 58, Benton with 37, Faulkner with 31, Jefferson with 29, Miller with 21 and Craighead with 20.

Although Hutchinson provided his weekly COVID-19 update yesterday, he said today’s visit to and update from Batesville was scheduled prior to the change to weekly updates.

Hutchinson spoke about the UAMS modeling that was released yesterday, which offers COVID-19 short- and long-term projections. He referred back to a UAMS model from June 19 that said Arkansas would have 18,000 new cases per day, “and we’re not having that,” he said. “It shows some of the success we’ve had. But on the other side, they really give us a wakeup call as to the seriousness of this COVID-19 because their latest projection is that we could have an increase of 980 new deaths attributed to COVID-19 here in Arkansas; and whenever they make a projection like that, I think about lives lost, I think about the seriousness of this disease and how we need to avoid the spread of the infections.” He said the UAMS model did recognize and express concern that we could have a spread of cases coinciding with the opening of schools and universities, and the model also recognized the recent decrease in the positivity rate in Arkansas. Regarding the recent White House Task Force State Report, the governor said that although the state remains in the red for new cases per capita, the task force also noted that new cases are declining and positivity rate remains in the yellow. “Both of those just reminds us that we’ve made progress, but we have more work to do and the challenge, the battle, the fight is not yet finished,” said Hutchinson.