Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Tuesday reported the state's positivity rate for tests for covid-19 hit another high, while the state also recorded the highest number of new and active covid cases since the beginning of the pandemic.
During Tuesday’s weekly media briefing, Hutchinson said the state recorded 6,562 new cases, a record positivity rate of 25.5% over the last 7 days and a record total of 32,280 active cases.
The previous record positivity rate, 23.8%, was reported Monday. The state’s previous record of new cases, 4,978, was reported Thursday.
“[It] gives us challenges that we haven’t faced before,” Hutchinson said.
Due to the sheer volume of cases, the state is seeing an increase in hospitalizations, with the number of people in the state hospitalized with covid-19 rising by 53, according to the governor. The death toll as a result of the coronavirus rose by 27 to 9,248.
Hutchinson said that up to 50 National Guardsmen will be added across the state to assist with staffing and to reduce wait time at clinics. The number will increase if needed, he said.
School districts with a full mask mandate saw a 25% reduction in covid cases in 2021 among students and staff, Hutchinson said.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story conflated the increase in active coronavirus cases with the total number of active cases. Total active cases in Arkansas hit a high of 32,280; the active cases increased by 5,118 from yesterday.
EARLIER:
Gov. Asa Hutchinson will provide his weekly media update at 1:30 p.m.
Check back to watch the live video.
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