Arkansas on Saturday recorded 816 new daily covid-19 cases, the highest number for a Saturday since Oct. 9, according to data from the Arkansas Department of Health.
Saturday's increase, however, was 295 fewer than Friday's increase.
The state has recorded 543,242 coronavirus cases since March 2020. Of those, 526,227 are considered recovered.
Health Department officials said 7,908 cases were active, or currently infectious, as of Saturday, while the official death toll from the disease rose by 12, to 8,942.
The number of deaths reported Saturday was three higher than the number reported the previous Saturday. But after a week with multiple days of fewer reported deaths, the rolling seven-day average daily death toll was 14.57, down from the previous Saturday's 17. State officials have reported 102 coronavirus deaths over the seven-day period ending Saturday.
Hospitalizations from covid-19 in Arkansas dropped by 22 to 516 Saturday, the largest one-day decrease since Nov. 25. Hospitalizations had climbed for nine of the past 10 days.
The number of covid-19 patients in intensive care dropped by three Saturday, falling to 208. However, the number of patients on ventilators rose by four, to 94, marking the first increase after five consecutive days of decreases.
On Saturday, 12,209 covid-19 vaccines were administered, 4,245 more than on Friday but 1,407 fewer than on Dec. 11, according to Health Department data. As of Saturday, 391,213 Arkansans had received their third doses of the vaccines.
“I am encouraged to see vaccinations in large numbers each day with another 12,000 doses given out in the last 24 hours,” Gov. Asa Hutchinson tweeted Saturday. “We must continue this push as it is the best way to combat against the incoming Omicron variant.”
The Health Department reported the state’s first case of the omicron variant Friday. Dr. Jennifer Dillaha, the Health Department’s chief medical officer, said the case was associated with community spread and not with interstate travel.