Low death rate is a sign Utah is handling the COVID-19 pandemic well, researchers say

Numerous motorists line up for COVID-19 testing near University of Utah Health’s Sugar House Health Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, July 11, 2020. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

292 lives lost to the virus in Utah so far, including 6 more reported Wednesday

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s relatively young population may be helping to keep COVID-19 deaths at bay.

The highest percentage of cases is still found in the younger — age 25 to 44 — population in Utah, but they’re not the ones dying from it, according to Utah Department of Health data. Deaths are happening more readily in those older than 65 in Utah, and especially people over 85 years old who contract the virus.

“COVID-19 has been especially lethal to the elderly,” a report released Wednesday from the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute states. Death rates, the analysis continues, “appear to increase exponentially with age, as is common for death rates.”

Utah, however, has one of the lowest per-capita death rates in the country, but also has the youngest median age, of 31.3, according to the report. The average age in the United States is 38.4.

The research indicates that if Utah’s average age was higher, the state’s COVID-19 death rate would increase by 50% to 10.1 per 100,000 people. Conversely, if the country’s age structure was akin to Utah’s, there might be one-third fewer deaths across the states.

The U.S. has experienced the greatest number of deaths, nearly 150,000 resulting from the novel coronavirus since the first cases were reported. In Utah, 292 people have died from the virus and its complications.

Another six deaths were reported in Utah on Wednesday, as well as 339 new cases, bringing the total number of infections in Utah to 39,194, with about 26,643 cases presumed to be recovered.

The rolling seven-day average for positive tests is 511 per day, with a 9.8% positivity rate.

Among the newly reported deaths are four in Salt Lake County, including two men, one over 85 and one between 65 and 84; and two women, both between age 65 and 84. The two men and one woman were residents at long-term care facilities at the time of their deaths. A Utah County man between the ages of 45 and 64, a resident at a long-term care facility, also died. And a Weber County man between 65 and 84 was hospitalized at the time of his death.

Two-hundred-eight people are hospitalized with COVID-19 in Utah at this time.

The state has tested 518,191 people so far.

The Gardner Policy Institute’s analysis only credits Utah’s age discrepancy for a quarter of its death rate advantage over other states.

The report indicates that accuracy and reporting errors, as well as timeliness, might also be a factor in the results, though these factors will work out over time, researchers state, adding that Utah might have been better at preventing coronavirus infection, responding to it or treating the disease.

“This includes public policies and leadership that reduce disease transmission; health care treatment and resources; and how well individuals, communities, businesses and government adhere to and promote best practices,” the report states. “It very well could end up accounting for much of Utah’s lower death rate.”

Despite any headway the state experienced at the beginning of this pandemic, the report points out that “the numbers are continually growing.”

“If we’re not careful, Utah could teeter on the cusp of a death wave that eventually rivals or even surpasses the patterns seen for the U.S.,” according to researchers. The state fares well on “metrics such as employment and volunteerism in part because Utah’s leaders and residents work to make those metrics thrive.

“In this public health crisis, our outcomes will largely depend upon how wisely Utahns respond to the guidance of experts who have training and expertise in handling epidemics,” the report states. Tracing cases and outbreaks, quarantining and implementing other proven public health measures “will help Utah effectively weather the storm.”

The latest breakdown of Utah cases, hospitalizations and deaths by health district:

• Salt Lake County, 18,575; 1,207 hospitalized; 166 deaths.
• Utah County, 7,483; 353 hospitalized; 32 deaths.
• Southwest Utah, 2,827; 157 hospitalized; 24 deaths.
• Davis County, 2,819; 160 hospitalized; 12 deaths.
• Weber-Morgan, 2,480; 152 hospitalized; 25 deaths.
• Bear River (Box Elder, Cache, Rich), 2,113; 87 hospitalized; 5 deaths.
• Summit County, 679; 52 hospitalized; 1 death.
• San Juan County, 596; 76 hospitalized; 22 deaths.
• Wasatch County, 522; 20 hospitalized; 4 deaths.
• Tooele County, 518; 26 hospitalized; 0 deaths.
• Central Utah, 357; 20 hospitalized; 1 death.
• TriCounty (Uinta Basin), 146; 8 hospitalized; 0 deaths.
• Southeast Utah, 79; 6 hospitalized; 0 deaths.

This story will be updated.

from Deseret News https://ift.tt/2XaZSSR