Arizona reporting spike in coronavirus cases

Arizona recorded a small spike in coronavirus cases this past week when it recorded more than 600 new cases on Saturday, marking a sudden increase in what has been a downward trend in cases for the state.

Cases in Arizona have been consistently dropping since spiking in January; however, The Associated Press reported that 641 cases were confirmed in Arizona on Saturday, the highest reported single-day increase in about a month.

Like much of the southern U.S., Arizona is lagging somewhat behind the national vaccination rate with around 49 percent of the state’s population receiving at least one vaccine shot. Nationally, nearly 66 percent of U.S. adults have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Last week, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) issued an executive order banning public colleges from requiring that students wear masks, get vaccinated or provide vaccine documentation. The order was issued after Ducey blasted Arizona State University’s (ASU) policy that required unvaccinated people to wear masks indoors and get tested every two weeks.

“Students also cannot be mandated to be tested or wear masks in order to participate in learning,” the order read.

The AP noted that no colleges in Arizona have vaccine requirements.

“I think what happened here was some people thought that we were requiring vaccinations, initially, which we weren’t,” ASU President Michael Crow told local media. “I think that’s just gotten some people very upset, and hopefully they’ll take a closer look at it.”