File Photo By Mythili Gubbi/Cronkite News: Both Greenlee and Graham counties recently reported additional deaths attributed to COVID-19.
By Jon Johnson
CLIFTON – On Friday night, the Greenlee County Health Department reported another death attributed to COVID-19, while the Arizona Department of Health listed two additional deaths for Graham County on Saturday morning.
The new death increases Greenlee County’s total to 16 for the course of the pandemic and was a resident in their 70s from the Duncan area. The new Graham County deaths increase its total to 111 for the course of the pandemic, with four happening this week alone.
In total, Greenlee County has had eight deaths from the Duncan area, six from the Clifton area, and two from the Morenci area.
In addition to the new Greenlee County death, the health department also listed seven new confirmed cases, to bring the count’s total to 1,025 for the course of the pandemic, with 833 recoveries, 176 currently active cases, and 16 deaths.
In Graham County, there have been 7,108 total confirmed cases, with 6,538 recoveries, 461 currently active cases, and 111 deaths.
Both Greenlee County and Graham County have the same death rate of 1.56 percent per confirmed case, while the state’s average is 1.82 percent per confirmed case.
While some cases are asymptomatic or improve within a week or two, other cases have lingered with mild to severe effects for months and even more than a year, while it proves fatal to others. While those who have already had the virus and survived likely have natural antibodies to fight the virus from quickly returning, for those who have not had the virus the best way to avoid catching it is to be vaccinated.
The Graham County Department of Health and Human Services offers free vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson. Children 12 and up can receive the Pfizer vaccine, and adults can have any of the three. The health department provides the vaccine Mondays-Wednesdays from 8 a.m. – 12 p.m., Thursdays from 2 – 5 p.m., and the Pfizer vaccine on Thursdays and Fridays from 5 – 7:30 p.m. Click here to register to receive a vaccine.
