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Hawaii sees 41 new coronavirus infections as statewide tally climbs to 28,892

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / MARCH 19
                                Beachgoers enjoy the sun, sand and surf at the Kuhio Beach in Waikiki. Leaders in the state Legislature are depending on tourism to bring jobs and state revenues back to pre-pandemic levels. <a href="https://www.staradvertiser.com/2021/03/23/hawaii-news/economic-recovery-rosy-with-billions-in-federal-aid-set-to-roll-into-hawaii/" target="_self">Read more.</a><a href="https://www.staradvertiser.com/2021/03/23/hawaii-news/economic-recovery-rosy-with-billions-in-federal-aid-set-to-roll-into-hawaii/" target="_self"> </a>

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / MARCH 19

Beachgoers enjoy the sun, sand and surf at the Kuhio Beach in Waikiki. Leaders in the state Legislature are depending on tourism to bring jobs and state revenues back to pre-pandemic levels. Read more.

Hawaii Department of Health officials today reported 41 new coronavirus infections, bringing the state’s total since the start of the pandemic to 28,892 cases.

State health officials reported no new coronavirus-related deaths as the statewide death toll remains at 454.

The state’s official coronavirus-related death toll includes 361 fatalities on Oahu, 53 on Hawaii island, 36 on Maui, one on Kauai, and three Hawaii residents who died outside the state.

The U.S. coronavirus-related death toll today was more than 543,000 and the nationwide infection tally is more than 29.9 million.

Today’s new statewide infection cases include 28 on Oahu, eight on Maui, one on Hawaii island, one on Lanai, three Hawaii residents diagnosed outside the state, according to health officials.

The statistics released today reflect the new infection cases reported to the department on Sunday.

The total number of coronavirus cases by island since the start of the outbreak are 22,638 on Oahu, 2,637 on Maui, 2,385 in Hawaii County, 187 on Kauai, 110 on Lanai and 33 on Molokai. There are also 902 Hawaii residents who were diagnosed outside of the state.

Health officials also said today that of the state’s total infection count, 885 cases were considered to be active. Officials say they consider infections reported in the past 14 days to be a “proxy number for active cases.” The number of active cases in the state decreased by one today.

By island, Oahu has 500 active cases, Maui has 280, the Big Island has 96, Molokai has six, Kauai has one and Lanai has two.

Health officials counted 4,296 new COVID-19 test results in today’s tally, for a 0.95% statewide positivity rate. The state’s 7-day average positivity rate is 1.5%, according to the Hawaii COVID-19 Data dashboard.

The state’s Hawaii COVID-19 vaccine summary said today that 547,891 vaccines have been administered of the 691,050 received by the state. About 23.8% of the general population in Hawaii has received at least one dose of the vaccine. Of those who have received at least one vaccine dose so far, 49% are age 59 or younger, while 51% are age 60 or older. Of the administered vaccines, 523,019 were given to the general public and 24,872 were distributed through the federal pharmacy program, officials said.

>> RELATED: Students at Aikahi Elementary are returning to campuses under new CDC guidelines

Of all the confirmed Hawaii infection cases, 1,957 have required hospitalizations, with four new hospitalizations reported today by state health officials.

Eight hospitalizations in the statewide count are Hawaii residents who were diagnosed and treated outside the state. Of the 1,949 hospitalizations within the state, 1,670 have been on Oahu, 160 on Maui, 105 on the Big Island, eight on Kauai, five on Lanai and one on Molokai.

According to the latest information from the department’s Hawaii COVID-19 Data dashboard, a total of 33 patients with the virus were in Hawaii hospitals as of this morning, with seven in intensive care units and four on ventilators.

Oahu moved into the less-restrictive Tier 3 of the city’s four-tier economic recovery plan on Feb. 25 after being in Tier 2 since Oct. 22. Tier 3 permits social and outdoor recreational gatherings of up to 10 people, and restaurants to seat 10 people at a table, up from five now. Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi on March 11 announced modifications to Tier 3, including allowing bars to reopen under the same conditions as restaurants and extending the curfew until midnight.

Today’s seven-day average case count for Oahu is 42 and the seven-day average positivity rate is 1.6%, according to the mayor.


This breaking news story will be updated as more information becomes available.


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