Alaska Department of Health & Social Services Weekly Case Update
June 27 — July 3, 2021

Case Trends

• Overall, the number of identified cases of COVID-19 in Alaska increased last week compared to the previous week. This is the third week in a row of week-over-week increases.

• 281 cases were reported in Alaskans last week. This is a 23.2% increase from the week before. The largest changes were in the Kusilvak Census Area where the number of new cases decreased last week compared to the previous week and in Anchorage where the number of cases is rising.
• In most Boroughs and Census Areas, there is not clear evidence of either sustained increases or decreases. We expect considerable week-to-week variation, especially in less-populous areas.
• 37 new nonresident cases were identified this week for a total of 2,924 cases.

Regional Case Trends

** Rates based on <6 observations are not reported

Vaccination Status

• Anyone aged ≥12 years in Alaska is eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
• If you have received an initial dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, be sure to get your second dose too. Evidence suggests two doses of an mRNA vaccine are more effective than one dose of an mRNA vaccine, especially against emerging variants of concern.
• To schedule your vaccine appointment visit covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322.
• You can also visit vaccines.gov or find clinics in your area by texting your zip code to GETVAX (438829) in English, or VACUNA (822862) for Spanish.
• The Alaska vaccine dashboard is available online for the most up-to-date data.

Regional Vaccine Trends:

This is the percent of Alaskans aged 12+ who received one or more dose of vaccine.

New Hospitalizations and Deaths

• Cumulative hospitalizations increased to 1,624 with 6 documented among cases reported this week. Hospitalization reports often lag and only 1,606 hospitalizations were reported at this time last week, so there are 18 hospitalizations newly reported this week including ones that began during previous weeks.
• Three deaths were reported this week though all occurred prior to June 27 (370 total). It is common to take more than a week for a death to be reported, and deaths that occurred during June 27–July 3 may be reported in the future after death certificates are reviewed.

Variant Tracking

• The most recent Alaska COVID Genomic Surveillance report was released on July 7

• Alaska’s Public Health Laboratories continue to monitor for variants of concern and interest

Vaccine Breakthrough Cases

• Vaccine breakthrough (VB) infections of COVID are those detected in a person who is at least 2 weeks beyond their second dose of a 2-dose series or the only dose of a 1-dose series.
• From January 1–July 3, 2021, Alaska has recorded one death and 18 hospitalizations resulting from a VB infection among Alaska residents. These counts are provisional and subject to change as more data are compiled. In that same time frame, a total of 22,198 cases, 514 hospitalizations, and 82 deaths were reported. 97% of all hospitalizations to date were unvaccinated people.

• Specimens from VB infections are prioritized for sequencing and described in the weekly Alaska Genomics Report

Cases by Week Reported and Age Group 

Cases by Week Reported and Race

Cases by Week Reported and Region 

Additional informational resources:

• The State of Alaska COVID-19 vaccine status update page:
• The State of Alaska COVID-19 information page provides more information about the virus and how individuals and businesses can protect themselves and others from transmission
• For the most up-to-date case information, see the Alaska Coronavirus Response Hub dashboard: updated Monday – Friday at data.coronavirus.alaska.gov
• For DHSS media inquiries, please contact clinton.bennett@alaska.gov