2nd Cochise County coronavirus patient reported

A second Cochise County resident has been diagnosed with COVID-19, officials said Wednesday.

County health officials received confirmation Wednesday morning that the woman, who "just returned from overseas travel," had tested positive.

The woman "followed all self-isolation guidance and is recovering at home. A contact investigation has been completed and no threat to the community has been found," officials said.

An earlier case in the Arizona county, southeast of Tucson, "is recovering at home and remains in self-isolation," officials said Wednesday.

"It's important to note that both confirmed cases are related to domestic and overseas travel, but neither case is connected," said Cochise County Health Director Carrie Langley. "We want to remind the public that they should adhere to current travel advice from the CDC. Anyone who has recently returned from a trip should self-quarantine for 14 days, self-monitor for symptoms and social distance."

Arizona cases top 400

More than 400 Arizonans have now tested positive for COVID-19 and 6 have died, as reported cases again grew overnight. 49 Pima County residents have been diagnosed with coronavirus.

Six people have died in the state from COVID-19, including one Pima County woman.

The rate of reported spread slowed somewhat overnight. Diagnosed cases had been increasing by 50 percent day after day, but the figures released Wednesday morning were about 25 percent larger than Tuesday's total. But the total number of tests being run on Arizona patients is still not known to the press or public.

Wednesday morning, state officials reported that 401 patients in Arizona had tested positive for the disease. Tuesday, there were 326 reported cases, with 235 on Monday. Sunday, that figure was 152.

A majority of cases in Pima and Maricopa counties are younger than 60.

The new Cochise County patient was not included in the state tally yet.

Forty-nine recorded positive patients live on the Navajo Nation, and have now been included in the daily tallies released by the Arizona Department of Health Services, officials said. The entire reservation has been placed on lockdown by tribal leaders.

The outbreak has reached at least 12 of Arizona's 15 counties. The largest group of cases has been reported in Maricopa County: 251 patients there have been diagnosed.

Limited data on limited tests

Health officials have repeatedly said that the number of reported cases is just a fraction of the number of Arizonans who are carrying COVID-19. With limited testing capacity still, only the sickest people with known possible coronavirus contacts have been being tested.

Many people carry the virus without developing symptoms for days, but still spread it to others they come in contact with — which is why doctors and public health experts repeatedly emphasize that people should remain at home as much as possible to help contain the outbreak.

Private commercial labs have not been previously required to report the total number of tests they are performing, only the positive cases. That has changed this week, with Gov. Doug Ducey ordering that all tests be reported to state health officials, but no data has been released to the public. A spokesman for the Arizona Department of Health Services said he did not know when the total test numbers would be provided.