Juliuz Samiano receives a COVID test from contact tracer Angie Viote at the Southern Nevada Health District Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022.
Published Friday, Jan. 7, 2022 | 2:55 p.m.
Updated Friday, Jan. 7, 2022 | 4:47 p.m.
The Las Vegas area tallied a record 3,508 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, while the state set a new high of 4,743 cases, health officials said.
The previous record for new daily COVID cases in Clark County was was 3,363 on Dec. 30. The previous statewide high was 3,420.
The number of COVID cases in Clark County since the start of the pandemic is now 386,861.
Along with the record number of new cases, Clark County had 29 new hospitalizations on Thursday, bringing the pandemic total to 23,311. Two new COVID-related deaths were also reported in Southern Nevada, bringing the total to 6,529.
The health district is attributing the rise in cases to the omicron variant, which has grown in prevalence since holiday-related social gatherings and travel. In the past 30 days, SNHD discovered two variants — Delta and omicron — at 16.7% and 83.3%, respectively, of COVID-19 cases.
The urged residents 5 years and older get fully vaccinated and that those over 12 receive a booster dose to protect themselves and others from COVID-19.
“COVID-19 vaccines remain the most effective measure to protect against serious illness and hospitalization and to reduce the likelihood of new variants emerging,” the health district said in a statement.
Clark County's test positivity rate has exploded in recent weeks, from 9.7% on Dec. 15 to 25.8% on Thursday.
In response, public health officials in Las Vegas have adjusted their operations at test sites to accommodate an increased demand.
Six more testing sites will debut across Southern Nevada next week, including at the Laughlin Library, the Clark County Government Center in downtown Las Vegas, and Centennial Hills Library and Rainbow Library in northwest Las Vegas.
Appointments are required and can be made here.
The Southern Nevada Health District says the best way for people to protect themselves is to get vaccinated and boosted, wear masks, wash their hands frequently and stay home if sick.
The county's vaccination rate as of today is 56.3%, with the highest rates among those 18 and older at 68.4%. A total 1,305,826 vaccine doses have been administered in Clark County.
