Arkansas surpassed 50,000 cases of the coronavirus on Monday after 645 positive tests were reported to the Health Department over the previous 24 hours.
Hospitalizations for the virus, meanwhile, fell by six, to 508. There were 11 new deaths reported Monday, bringing the toll to 555.
The virus was first identified in Arkansas on March 11 and spread to more than 25,000 cases in early July. In the month since, daily case counts have numbered in the hundreds and peaked at over a thousand at times. On Monday, cumulative cases reached 50,028, Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced.
“We’re beating the curve and beating the projections,” Hutchinson said. “Now, this is not the place to flatten it out. You don’t want to flatten out at 700 cases a day or 800 cases a day, you’ve got to continue that decline.”
The governor said that the statewide mask mandate he ordered in July was beginning to take effect, as evidenced by a drop in average cases recorded last week. If that drop does not continue or new outbreaks emerge, Hutchinson said he would consider taking further steps to limit the movement of individuals in affected areas.
Of the total cases announced on Monday, 7,343 were considered active, close to the all-time high recorded in Arkansas during the pandemic.
EARLIER:
Gov. Asa Hutchinson and state health officials will provide an update on Arkansas' covid-19 response at 1:30 p.m.
The total number of coronavirus cases reported in Arkansas remained at 49,383 Monday morning, according to a state website. The death toll remained at 544.
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