KNWA FOX24

COVID-19 in Arkansas: State again shatters record for patients hospitalized with virus, new daily cases

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The state of Arkansas continued to see staggering increases in the number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 around the state, according to data released Wednesday.

The new figures from the Arkansas Department of Health saw the number of patients diagnosed with the virus climb by 113 to 1,600, breaking through the pandemic record set just one day before.

The rise in hospitalizations has been trending up for weeks and stands in stark contrast to just a month ago when there were only 516 COVID-19 patients in the state, a jump of 210%.

Arkansas also saw an increase in the number of patients needing enhanced care, with the patient count in ICU care jumping by 24 to 405 and the number of patients on ventilators going up 21 to 192.

ADH officials reported 14,494 new cases Wednesday, setting a new single-day record and pushing the pandemic total to 702,483. Active cases climbed by 6,440 to 95,377. There were also 10 more deaths added to the state’s total, which now sits at 9,462.

Despite calls for vaccinations by state health leaders, there were only 5,034 new doses administered in the past 24 hours. There are currently 1,530,622 Arkansans fully immunized against COVID-19, with another 371,795 people having partial immunity.