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- By Native News Online Staff
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — On Friday, the Navajo Department of Health, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center and the Navajo Area Indian Health Service, reported 143 new Covid-19 positive cases for the Navajo Nation and 14 more deaths.
The total number of deaths is now 954 as of Friday. Reports indicate that 13,812 individuals have recovered from Covid-19, and 227,125 Covid-19 tests have been administered. The total number of positive Covid-19 cases is now 26,955.
Navajo Nation Covid-19 positive cases by Service Unit:
- Chinle Service Unit: 4,997
- Crownpoint Service Unit: 2,701
- Ft. Defiance Service Unit: 2,783
- Gallup Service Unit: 4,319
- Kayenta Service Unit: 2,476
- Shiprock Service Unit: 4,723
- Tuba City Service Unit: 3,210
- Winslow Service Unit: 1,710
* 36 residences with Covid-19 positive cases are not specific enough to place them accurately in a Service Unit.
On Friday, the state of Arizona reported 8,099 new cases, Utah reported 2,649, and New Mexico reported 921 new cases. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez visited Shiprock Chapter on Friday, where he thanked health care workers from Northern Navajo Medical Center as they continued administering the Covid-19 vaccines. Health care facilities across the Navajo Nation continue to administer vaccines to help protect elders and high-risk patients against the virus.
“The 57-hour weekend lockdown is in effect this weekend. The new provisions under the latest public health order will take effect on Monday. We have to keep fighting Covid-19 using all the resources that we have. We continue to rely on the public health experts and the data that we receive and share with the public during our online town halls. Our health care workers are doing a great job administering the vaccines to our people, but even after you receive the vaccine you must continue to wear a mask and take all precautions. Stay home during the lockdown, wear a mask if you have to go into public, practice social distancing, avoid in-person gatherings, and wash your hands often. We are in this together, so let’s be considerate of others as well,” Nez said.
On Thursday, the Navajo Department of Health issued Public Health Emergency Order No. 2021-002, which will go into effect on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021 with the following provisions:
- Extends the Stay-At-Home Lockdown which requires all residents to remain at home 24-hours, seven days a week, with the exceptions of essential workers that must report to work, emergency situations, to obtain essential food, medication, and supplies, tend to livestock, outdoor exercising within the immediate vicinity of your home, wood gathering and hauling with a permit.
- Implements a daily curfew from 9:00 p.m. (MST) until 5:00 a.m. (MST) seven days a week.
- Essential businesses may operate between the hours of 7:00 a.m. (MST) and 8:00 p.m. (MST) daily, including gas stations, grocery stores, convenience stores, hardware stores, laundromats, restaurants, food establishments, banks and similar financial institutions, and hay vendors, provided they comply with provisions outline in the order to help protect employees and the public from Covid-19.
- Refrain from gathering with individuals from outside your immediate household and requiring all residents to wear a mask in public, avoid public gatherings, maintain social (physical) distancing, remain in your vehicle for curb-side and drive-through services.
- Public Health Emergency Order No. 2021-002 is available online at: https://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/Covid-19
The Navajo Health Command Operations Center, under the Navajo Department of Health, now has an online registration form available for those who want to receive the Covid-19 vaccine. The online registry will assist with planning the allocation of vaccines and in scheduling individuals at the appropriate health care facility. Please visit the following link for more information and to register: https://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/Covid-19/Covid-19-Vaccine/Vaccine-Registration.
Covid-19 testing schedules are available online at the Navajo Health Command Operations Center website: https://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/Covid-19/Covid-19-Testing. For more information, including helpful prevention tips, and resources to help stop the spread of Covid-19, visit the Navajo Department of Health's Covid-19 website: http://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/Covid-19. For Covid-19 related questions and information, call (928) 871-7014.
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