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Active COVID-19 cases in ASU community decrease by 150 since Monday

As the second week of the spring semester comes to a close, active coronavirus cases in the ASU community are at 613

20200826 Covid Testing Sites-2.jpg
ASU students wait to get COVID tested in the SDFC Maroon Gym on the Tempe Campus, in Tempe, Arizona on Wednesday, August 26, 2020.

Active COVID-19 cases have continued to decline since the beginning of the spring semester, leaving ASU at a total of 613 active cases according to a University update Thursday. 

Cases have decreased by 150 since Monday, according to Thursday's update. At the end of the second full week of the Fall 2020 semester, active cases were at a University peak of 983

Active cases among students decreased by 111 from Monday to 489 total and active cases among employees decreased by 39 to 124 total.

There are 454 active cases among students off campus in the metropolitan Phoenix area and 29 students are isolating on the Tempe campus. A total of six active student cases are in isolation on the Downtown Phoenix, West or Polytechnic campuses.

ASU has reported 5,738 cumulative cases since Aug. 1, according to the update. Since Monday's update, cumulative cases have increased by 116 among students and increased by 18 among employees.

The University has collected approximately 203,939 tests from students and employees since Aug. 1. According to the update, ASU has tested approximately 74% of on-campus students and 13% of off-campus students since Jan. 1.

The ASU community's percent positivity rate is roughly 2.8%, using the cumulative number of positive results as the numerator and the total number of tests collected as the denominator.

Meanwhile, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show Arizona still has the highest rate of average daily COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people in the country.

Internal tracking of Arizona Department of Health Services ZIP code data where ASU campuses are located — 85281, 85004, 85306 and 85212 along with the 85282 ZIP code in Tempe — done by The State Press shows cumulative cases have increased by 526 since Monday's update. 

There were 350 combined new cases reported between Tempe's 85281 and 85282 ZIP codes since Monday. The 85212 ZIP code, where the Polytechnic campus is located, reported 106 new cases. The 85004 ZIP code, where the Downtown Phoenix campus is located, reported 11 new cases. The 85306 ZIP code, where the West campus is located, reported 59 new cases since Monday.

The Sun Devil Fitness Complex at the Tempe campus will open on Jan. 22 and Jan. 25 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. as a vaccine distribution center, according to a University spokesperson. The state has allocated 1,000 vaccines to the University to distribute weekly and the site is expected to be open for at least the next eight weeks.

READ MORE: ASU to open a COVID-19 vaccination site at the SDFC

Students who volunteer three or more shifts to assist in vaccination distribution at the SDFC "will be able to get the COVID vaccine while on site," an email obtained by The State Press from ASU's human resources and University Business Services departments said. 

It is unclear at this time how many students will be needed and the email did not say what their roles would be outside of being a member of the "support staff at the vaccination sites."

Community assistants, along with approximately 11,500 other community members, are also eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine as part of both Phase 1A and 1B of COVID-19 vaccine distribution in Arizona.

The individuals eligible include "faculty, emergency workers, health workers, lab workers, police officers, those over 75, coaches and many staff and student workers in high student contact jobs," according to a University spokesperson.

The University has not provided The State Press with the number of ASU community members who have been vaccinated, but eligible employees have been asked to "email a copy of their COVID-19 vaccination record card to Employee Health and Wellness." 


Reach the reporter at kkwilso5@asu.edu and follow @kaceywilson_ on Twitter. 

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