Arkansas' count of coronavirus cases rose Friday by 1,015 — the second consecutive daily increase of more than 1,000 cases.
The state's death toll from the virus, as tracked by the Arkansas Department of Health, rose by 20, to 1,665.
“Yesterday we saw another new record in our testing efforts," Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a news release announcing the day's virus numbers.
"With over 15,000 total tests, we can see the results of our investment and commitment to grow Arkansas's testing infrastructure. This weekend is critical as we continue to battle COVID-19. Remember to wear a mask, keep your distance, and wash your hands frequently.”
The state's count of cases confirmed through polymerase chain reaction tests, or PCR tests, rose by 814, to 92,117.
Its tally of "probable" cases, which include those identified through less-sensitive antigen tests, rose by 201, to 5,422.
The state's count of deaths among confirmed cases rose to 1,514, while the death toll among probable cases remained unchanged at 151.
The number of people hospitalized in the state with covid-19 fell by four, to 590. Those patients included 102 who were on ventilators, down from 106 a day earlier.
The state's cumulative count of confirmed and probable cases rose to 97,539.
Already at a record level since Wednesday, the number of confirmed or probable cases that were considered active rose by 185, to 8,609. That reflected the cases that were added Friday minus the 20 deaths, the 809 Arkansans who were newly classified as having recovered, and one person with an active infection who died of a cause unrelated to covid-19.
The daily increase was a decline from the record 1,278 cases that were added to the state's tallies on Thursday. It was also a decline from the 1,167 cases that were added the previous Friday.
Over a rolling seven-day period, the average number of confirmed and probable cases added to the state's tallies each day fell from a record 911 as of Thursday to 890 as of Friday.