Alaska remains in the low alert level as does the Kenai Peninsula for positive cases of COVID-19 reported through Monday. Locally, all regions of the peninsula remain in the low alert level.

Based on the average daily case rate over 14 days per 100,000 people, statewide there were 3.49. For the peninsula, the case rate dropped even further over last week, to 1.9 cases per 100,000.

For the period of Friday, June 18, through Monday, June 21, DHSS reported 86 new resident cases and seven new nonresident cases, including one in Kenai, for a total of 68,112 resident cases and 2,851 nonresident cases. One new case was reported for Homer and two for Soldotna. The new case count includes 38 new cases in Anchorage, nine in Hooper Bay, nine in Wasilla, three in Eagle River, two in Juneau, two in Palmer, two in Sitka, two in Tok, two in Wrangell, and one each in the Bethel Census Area, the Chugach Census Area, Craig, Delta Junction, Kodiak, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Metlakatla, the Northwest Arctic Borough and Willow.

DHSS also announced on Monday two new new hospitalizations, bringing the total to 1,602 since the pandemic began. As of Monday, there were 10 total COVID-related hospitalizations in Alaska and one for a person suspected of having COVID-19. Four of the patients on ventilators. The percentage of patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 is 1.2%. The average percentage of daily positive tests for the previous days is 1.2%. According to DHSS, as of Jan. 1, 97% of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 have been unvaccinated.

All regions of the peninsula remain in the low alert level, according to the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District dashboard. On the central peninsula there have been nine cases in the past 14 days, on the southern peninsula there have been nine reported cases and on the eastern peninsula there has been one case. On the southern peninsula, one case was in “other south” and eight were in Homer.

Of tests done at South Peninsula Hospital from May 1 to June 21, there were 1,973 tests, of which 1,939 were negative, 34 were positive and none are pending. For the Kenai Peninsula as of June 21, there have been 4,395 total confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 753 in the South Peninsula Hospital service area, of which 95 were in Anchor Point, 19 in Fritz Creek, 514 in Homer, and 1254 in the other southern peninsula census areas.

Free COVID-19 tests are offered 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week at the lower level of the South Peninsula Hospital Specialty Clinic, at 4201 Bartlett Street, Homer. Please use the Danview Avenue access. Please call and pre-register before coming if and when possible.

Testing is also available through the SVT Health & Wellness clinics in Homer, Seldovia and Anchor Point. Call ahead at 907-226-2228.

In Ninilchik, NTC Community Clinic is providing testing on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The testing is only for those traveling, symptomatic, needing testing for medical procedures or with a known exposure after seven days. Only 20 tests will be offered per day. To make an appointment to be tested at the NTC Community Clinic, call 907-567-3970.

On the central peninsula, testing is available at Capstone Family Clinic, K-Beach Medical, Soldotna Professional Pharmacy, Central Peninsula Urgent Care, Peninsula Community Health Services, Urgent Care of Soldotna, the Kenai Public Health Center and Odyssey Family Practice. Call Kenai Public Health at 907-335-3400 for information on testing criteria for each location.

In Seward, testing is available at Providence Seward, Seward Community Health Center, Glacier Family Medicine and North Star Health Clinic.

Reach Michael Armstrong at marmstrong@homernews.com.