JONESBORO — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has changed the status of several counties in Arkansas due to increased coronavirus infections and hospitalizations.
Now, two counties are rated with high community levels of infection and 14 are listed as medium.
Jackson County and its adjacent neighbors of Independence, White and Woodruff are among those that have been elevated to medium community levels, based on reports from Nov. 24 through Wednesday.
While the number of new cases in Jackson County was low, the hospitalization rate for those new infections was three times higher than in the rest of the counties in the northeastern corner of the state, according to CDC statistics. Hospitalizations in Arkansas and Monroe counties, classified as high community levels, are four times the rate of Craighead County.
The CDC’s COVID-19 Tracker reached the classifications by comparing standardized data across the U.S. In addition to new infections, it factors in hospitalizations and staffing levels at hospitals serving those counties.
On Friday, the Arkansas Department of Health reported 754 new cases statewide, including 25 in Craighead County. The state also disclosed seven deaths, but none in Northeast Arkansas.
Pulaski and Washington counties had 87 new cases each, followed by Benton County with 48 and Sebastian County with 32.
Active cases increased by 381 statewide to 4,782. Active cases were up in all of Northeast Arkansas, with the exception of Mississippi County.
Hospitals reported an increase of five COVID-positive patients to 201. Of those, 19 were on ventilators, which was an increase of four. Hospital admissions in Northeast Arkansas remained at 15, unchanged from Thursday.
Friday Northeast Arkansas COVID-19 cases by county:
Craighead –25 new cases, 201 active cases.
Greene – 12 new cases, 108 active cases.
Lawrence – 8 new cases, 19 active cases.
Poinsett – 5 new cases, 61 active cases.
Mississippi – 4 new cases, 66 active cases.
Jackson – 7 new cases, 27 active cases.
Randolph – 5 new cases, 19 active cases.
Cross – 6 new cases, 23 active cases.
Clay – 4 new cases, 26 active cases.
