Pine Bluff, Arkansas – The latest surge in new Covid-19 positive cases in Arkansas is just a reminder that we are still far away from the pandemic end especially if the state continues with the low vaccination rates.
UAMS issued new predictive model on Tuesday on the Covid-19 situation right now.
According to the model, the state will reach 370,000 positive cases by July 26 which is 16,000 more cases compared to now. Additionally, the number of people hospitalized as a result of the virus and the total number of deaths will also increase.
Currently, the positivity rate in Arkansas is more than 20% of all conducted tests which is five times more compared to the national average. These numbers are frightening.
“COVID is no longer smoldering. It has broken out into a raging forest fire that will grow in size and strength,” the report stated. “We cannot stand still. We must act to reduce the consequences of this new surge to the extent possible.”
The two main reasons for the latest surge in numbers are the low vaccination rate in the state and the delta variant which is far more contagious.
Only around 35% of the Arkansans are vaccinated while the national average is around 50%.
Yesterday, we published the latest Covid-19 report for the last three days.
