Virus continues to spread throughout Graham and Greenlee counties
By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – A variety of thresholds have recently been surpassed by new COVID-19 cases both locally and in the state.
According to the ADHS, as of Friday, the state has had 1,001,871 confirmed cases of COVID-19 for the course of the pandemic, with 18,724 deaths. The state also reports 55.6 percent of the state has been vaccinated.
Locally, Graham County reported 101 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the last three days, bringing the county’s total for the course of the pandemic to 6,134, with 5,610 recoveries, 435 active cases, and 89 deaths. For the week of Aug. 20 – 26 alone, Graham County saw an increase of 216 new cases.
The majority of the new cases are from the Safford zip code (the most populous zip code in the county) but the numbers from the Thatcher zip code have jumped lately and the Pima/Bylas zip code numbers have remained steady as of late as well.
The Pima/Bylas zip code includes a portion of the San Carlos Apache Reservation, which has seen its positive test numbers skyrocket. The reservation straddles both Graham and Gila counties, therefore its numbers are split up between the two counties geographically. As of Friday, the San Carlos Apache Tribe reported 356 currently active cases.
In Greenlee County, the health department has reported an almost unheard number of 97 currently active cases for the county, with 709 total confirmed cases for the course of the pandemic. The health department also reports 601 recoveries and 11 deaths.
Every county in Arizona is in the “high” designation for the spread of the virus with the exception of scarcely populated La Paz County, which is one step down in the “substantial” spread designation.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, Graham County has a fully vaccinated rate of about 48 percent, with those 12 and older at 58.4 percent, those 18 and older at 62.6 percent, those 65 and older at 90.8 percent, with 98.9 percent of those 65 and older having at least one dose of vaccine.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, Greenlee County has a fully vaccinated rate of about 32.8 percent, with those 12 and older at 40.2 percent, those 18 and older at 44.4 percent, those 65 and older at 65.7 percent, with 72.6 percent of those 65 and older having at least one dose of vaccine.
The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has been fully approved by the Food and Drug Administration, with the Moderna vaccination likely not far behind. Both of those vaccines are mRNA vaccines that teach our cells how to make a protein that triggers an immune response inside the body. While those who are vaccinated may still get COVID-19 and could pass it on to others, the vaccine helps alleviate any symptoms. The overwhelming majority of those hospitalized (nearly all) for COVID-19 are patients who have not been vaccinated.
