A week after UF began vaccinating students, faculty and staff ages 16 and older, the university’s COVID-19 isolation numbers steadily decreased. Daily COVID-19 tests have also remained at a seven-day average positivity rate of 1% since March 12.
Since April 5, 20 UF employees and 69 students have tested positive — about the same number of employees and half the number of students who tested positive last week.
As of Monday, the university recorded 9,731 total positive tests since it began keeping track last March. This semester, 2,521 UF faculty, staff, students and other affiliates have tested positive. The low seven-day average for positive results has maintained because of days like Friday with 1,516 negative and 14 positive cases collected on campus showing little spread.
Isolation counts on- and off-campus have dropped steadily since March 5. Total quarantining individuals fell from 510 to 372 in the last week, and on-campus quarantine occupancy decreased from 6% to 3% on Tuesday.
UF Health Shands Hospital had 11.92% adult ICU availability (31 beds) on Tuesday, and North Florida Regional Medical Center had 6.25% (three beds), according to the Agency for Health Care Administration of Florida.
A total of 95,613, or about 36% of county residents, have been vaccinated in Alachua County as of Tuesday, according to the Alachua County COVID-19 dashboard. Of these residents, 33,021 have received one dose and 62,3592 have received two.
Contact Manny Rea at mrea@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @ReaManny.
Manny Rea is a journalism sophomore and the current health reporter for The Alligator. He worked as a copy editor in his freshman year before moving over to the Avenue in summer 2020. He likes to listen to dollar-bin records and read comics, and he is patiently waiting to go back to movies and concerts.
