State reports 48 cases of COVID-19 as number of active cases hits 400

This scanning electron image shows a cell (tan) heavily infected with particles of the virus that causes COVID-19 (orange), isolated from a patient sample. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

State health officials are reporting that there is now a record high of 400 active COVID-19 cases, of 940 Alaskans who have tested positive. The increase in active cases also was a new daily high for the state. 

Officials reported 48 confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday. That’s also a new record daily high. There were 36 Alaskans and 12 non-residents reported to have tested positive for the virus. 

Of the residents, 21 were from Anchorage, five from Fairbanks, four from Seward, two from Palmer, and one each from Eagle River, Juneau, Soldotna and a community in the Valdez-Cordova Census Area that the state didn’t name. 

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Eight of the non-residents work in the seafood industry, including five in Bristol Bay and Lake and Peninsula boroughs, two in Sitka and one in the Dillingham Census Area. There also were two who work in tourism in the Kenai Peninsula Borough and additional individual non-residents in Anchorage and the Kenai Peninsula Borough.

The number of people hospitalized who are either COVID-19 positive or under investigation increased by two, from 16 on Sunday to 18 on Monday. 

There were no new deaths reported. 

Correction: This story has been corrected to reflect a change the state made to the number of people who were reportedly hospitalized on Monday with COVID-19 or under investigation for possible having the virus. That number went up by two, it did not more than double.

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Andrew Kitchenman is the state government and politics reporter for Alaska Public Media and KTOO in Juneau. Reach him at akitchenman@alaskapublic.org.

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