COVID-19 Alaska Weekly Case Update: September 12 – September 18, 2021

Alaska Weekly Update

Alaska Department of Health & Social Services Weekly Case Update
September 12 — September 18, 2021

Intermediate

Statewide transmission
Rt 1.1

HIGH

Statewide alert status 781.9

HIGH ALERT

Hospital capacity

HIGH

Test positivity
9.6%

62.5%
of Alaskans aged 12+ are vaccinated

Red- Rt >1.2
Orange- Rt 1-1.2 Yellow- Rt <1

7-day case rate per 100,000 population.

Red-  ≥100
Orange- 50-99.99
Yellow- 10-49.99
Blue- 0-9.99

 

Multiple hospitals in Anchorage were at surge capacity the weekend of September 18th and September 19th due to high volumes of both COVID and non-COVID patients.

Red->5%
Orange- 2-5%
Yellow- <2%

This includes people with at least one dose. Estimated AK population 12 and older of 607,022 from the AK Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

Case Trends

  • The number of reported COVID-19 cases in Alaska continued last week on an upwards trajectory.
  • Alaska currently has the highest number of cases in the last seven days per 100,000 population among the 50 states.
  • Alaska currently has more people hospitalized with COVID-19 than were hospitalized with COVID-19 at the peak of the previous surge in late November and early December 2020.
    • Among the 50 states, Alaska had the tenth largest percentage increase in number of persons hospitalized with COVID-19 over the past two weeks.
    • Hospitalizations are continuing to occur in younger Alaskans, with the median age of persons hospitalized due to COVID-19 in 2021 being 6 years younger than in 2020.
    • Among those hospitalized due to COVID-19 and with specimen collection dates from January 16, 2021 through September 18, 2021, unvaccinated and partially vaccinated patients had a median age about 16 years younger than fully vaccinated patients.
    • Hospital capacity is reaching a point in Alaska where it may become difficult to care for everyone who needs care, even for non-COVID health concerns. Some care may need to be delayed, there may be long wait times, and hospital beds may not be available.

  • 5,459 cases were reported in Alaskans between September 12–September 18. This is a 32.8% increase from the week before.
  • High levels of COVID-19 transmission are occurring in Alaska communities that are on the road system.
    • Per capita incidence rates in Matanuska-Susitna Borough and Fairbanks North Star Borough have rapidly increased over the past few weeks and now equal or exceed rates in Anchorage and the Kenai Peninsula Borough.
    • Rates in Juneau are quite high as well.
  • The 7-day test-positivity rate in Alaska is continuing to climb and is the highest it has ever been, indicating widespread community transmission and the need for more testing.
  • While the intensity of COVID-19 transmission varies substantially between communities off the road system, COVID-19 cases are regularly reported from nearly all boroughs and census areas.
  • Several factors are likely contributing to Alaska’s current surge:
    • The Delta variant
    • Vaccination rates (Alaska currently ranks 35th out of the 50 US states in terms of the proportion of the population that is fully vaccinated)
    • Waning immunity (both vaccine-induced and infection-induced immunity)
    • The degree to which people are engaging in community mitigation efforts to slow the spread, such as masking, social distancing, indoor ventilation, testing, isolation, and quarantine.

COVID-19 Guidance

Take action now to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and preserve health care capacity.

  • Please get vaccinated if you haven’t already. Currently available COVID vaccines will help protect you, your family, and your community against COVID-19, including the delta variant.
  • Wearing a mask when in indoor public spaces regardless of vaccination status is an important step to take to slow the spread of COVID-19. Most Alaskans live in an area with substantial or high community transmission where this action is needed to protect your health and the health of others.
  • Continue to avoid crowds and practice social distancing – particularly when indoors.
  • Seek testing if you have any symptoms or have been exposed to an infected person.
    • If you do test positive, isolate right away, and notify your contacts. Ask them to get tested and, if they are unvaccinated, to quarantine.
  • If you test positive and you’re at increased risk for severe COVID, obtain monoclonal antibody treatment. This has been shown to be an effective treatment for reducing the risk of hospitalization. This treatment works best when given early.
    • Persons at high risk includes but is not limited to persons who are elderly, immunocompromised, obese, pregnant, or have certain chronic underlying medical conditions.

Borough/Census Area Alert Level Trends

  • Alert levels are based on the case counts over the past 7 days as well as the daily number of reported cases over the past 7 days per 100,000 population.
  • Alert levels have been changed to more closely mirror CDC’s community transmission indicator and are calculated by borough and census area, rather than by region.

Borough/Census Area

Alert Level
August 30

Alert Level
September 7

Alert Level
September 13

Alert Level
September 20

Count

Rate

Count

Rate

Count

Rate

Count

Rate

Anchorage Municipality

1,314

454.7

1,399

484.1

1,571

543.7

2,570

889.4

Fairbanks North Star Borough

337

346.9

537

552.7

628

646.4

733

754.4

Juneau City and Borough

142

446.9

158

497.3

100

314.7

250

786.8

Kenai Peninsula Borough

406

688.9

471

799.2

275

466.6

369

626.1

Matanuska-Susitna Region

411

383.0

667

621.6

741

690.6

771

718.5

Nome Census Area

129

1,320.5

24

245.7

31

317.3

23

235.4

North Slope Borough

68

695.9

198

2,026.4

242

2,476.7

255

2,609.8

Northwest Arctic Borough

54

712.1

58

764.9

29

382.4

54

712.1

Chugach Census Area

22

325.9

21

311.1

26

385.1

24

355.5

Copper River Census Area

14

518.7*

23

852.2

25

926.3

16

592.8*

Denali Borough

6

332.2*

10

553.7*

5

**

9

498.3*

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area

24

346.0

22

317.1

38

547.8

51

735.2

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area

19

376.7*

23

456.0

31

614.6

30

594.8

Haines Borough

20

793.7

9

357.1*

6

238.1*

16

634.9*

Petersburg Borough

8

250.9*

4

**

0

**

2

**

Sitka City and Borough

32

375.5

13

152.5*

10

117.3*

31

363.7

Skagway Municipality

3

**

1

**

2

**

1

**

Wrangell City and Borough

22

924.8

6

252.2*

4

**

1

**

Yakutat plus Hoonah-Angoon

4

**

4

**

1

**

4

**

Ketchikan Gateway Borough

97

709.2

88

643.4

68

497.2

69

504.5

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

21

344.8

38

624.0

23

377.7

29

476.2

Bethel Census Area

147

822.7

110

615.6

148

828.3

178

996.2

Kusilvak Census Area

35

432.7

34

420.4

29

358.6

56

692.4

Aleutians East Borough

3

**

9

307.7*

4

**

2

**

Aleutians West Census Area

8

144.3*

20

360.8

8

144.3*

6

108.2*

Dillingham Census Area

38

796.1

64

1,340.9

38

796.1

44

921.9

Kodiak Island Borough

66

523.4

49

388.5

49

388.5

86

681.9

Bristol Bay plus Lake and Peninsula

5

**

7

289.3*

2

**

18

743.8*

Statewide

3,455

474.0

4,067

558.0

4,137

567.6

5,699

781.9

*Rates based on <20 observations are statistically unreliable and should be used with caution.
**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. Scientific studies have shown that two doses of an mRNA vaccine are more effective than one dose of an mRNA vaccine, especially against emerging variants of concern.
  • CDC recommends that people with moderately to severely compromised immune systems receive an additional dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine at least 28 days after a second dose of an mRNA vaccine.
  • Vaccinated persons with immunocompromising conditions should discuss with their health care providers the need for additional personal protective measures.
  • To schedule your vaccine appointment visit covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322.
  • To find clinics in your area you can visit vaccines.gov or text 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.

Borough/Census Area Vaccination Coverage

This is the percent of Alaskans aged ≥12 years who received one or more doses of vaccine.

Borough/Census Area

September 21

Aleutians East Borough

88.8%

Aleutians West Census Area

74.6%

Anchorage Municipality

66.6%

Bethel Census Area

79.0%

Bristol Bay plus Lake and Peninsula

91.8%

Denali Borough

72,4%

Dillingham Census Area

64.4%

Fairbanks North Star Borough

54.3%

Haines Borough

73.5%

Juneau City and Borough

84.2%

Kenai Peninsula Borough

51.8%

Ketchikan Gateway Borough

70.7%

Kodiak Island Borough

72.5%

Kusilvak Census Area

82.8%

Matanuska-Susitna Borough

45.2%

Nome Census Area

84.6%

North Slope Borough

41.1%

Northwest Arctic Borough

68.0%

Petersburg Borough

68.6%

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

70.2%

Sitka City and Borough

83.2%

Skagway Municipality

87.1%

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area

37.5%

Valdez-Cordova Census Area

66.0%

Wrangell City and Borough

66.0%

Yakutat plus Hoonah-Angoon

80.0%

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area

82.5%

Statewide

62.5%

New Hospitalizations and Deaths

  • Cumulative hospitalizations increased by 77 to 2,211. Hospitalization reports often lag when a case was initially reported.
  • 21% of hospitalized patients in Alaska had COVID-19 as of September 21, 2021.
  • On September 18th, there were 201 persons with COVID-19 in AK hospitals, which is a 2.9% decrease relative to the week before when there were 207 persons hospitalized.
  • The cumulative number of COVID-19 deaths among Alaska residents increased by 14 to 459. It is common to take some time for a death to be reported and verified, and deaths that occurred during September 12–September 18 may be reported in the future after death certificates are reviewed.

Total Confirmed COVID Beds Occupied

Variant Tracking

The most recent Alaska COVID Genomic Surveillance report was released on September 21st.

Variants of Concern

Cases Identified

Change from Previous Report

First Identified in Alaska

Alpha (B.1.1.7)

457

+4

20 December 2020

Beta (B.1.351)

7

0

20 March 2021

Gamma (P.1/P.1.1/P.1.2)

74

0

8 February 2021

Delta (B.1.617.2-like)

2245

+601

30 May 2021

 

Variants of Interest

Cases Identified

Change from Previous Report

First Identified in Alaska

Epsilon (B.1.427/429)

139

0

24 December 2020

Eta (B.1.525)

1

0

16 March 2021

Iota (B.1.526)

24

0

4 February 2021

Mu (B.1.621)

156

+7

6 May 2021

Zeta (P.2)

4

0

27 January 2021

Vaccine Breakthrough Cases

  • Vaccine breakthrough (VB) infections of COVID-19 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.
  • The updated VB data are among Alaska residents aged ≥12 years with a specimen collection date from January 16–September 18, 2021. 
  • From January 16–September 18, 2021, 20 deaths, 135 hospitalizations, and 9,220 cases with a VB infection were reported among Alaska residents aged ≥12 years. These counts are provisional and subject to change as data are compiled and reviewed. In that same time frame, a total of 41,539 cases, 1,104 hospitalizations, and 161 deaths were reported.
  • 78% of all cases, 88% of all hospitalizations, and 88% of deaths among Alaska residents aged ≥12 years from January 16–September 18, 2021 were in people who were not fully vaccinated. 
  • Specimens from VB infections are described in the weekly Alaska Genomics Report. More detailed information about hospitalizations, deaths, and vaccine breakthrough infections among Alaskan residents can also be found in the monthly report.
  • Age-adjusted per capita rates of COVID-19 cases by vaccination status are updated weekly. Many COVID-19 cases with specimen collection in the immediate past weeks (indicated by the grey box) may have not yet been reported or counted.

  • Age-adjusted per capita rates of COVID-19 hospitalizations by vaccination status are updated monthly. Alaska residents who are fully vaccinated are much less likely to be hospitalized due to COVID-19 than those who are not fully vaccinated.

COVID-19 Communication Resources

Statewide Percentage of Daily Tests with Positive Results
(Seven day rolling average)

Cases by Week of Onset and Age

Cases by Week of Onset and Race

Additional informational resources: