Over the past seven days, Arizona has added more cases of the novel coronavirus, per capita, than any other country in the world.
According to a graph published by the New York Times, Arizona has recorded at least 3,300 new coronavirus cases per one million residents. The state currently has over 108,000 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, as well as 1,963 deaths. On Wednesday, the Arizona Department of Health reported 3,520 newly confirmed cases.
The graph from the Times, comes as cases of the novel virus continue to surge in Arizona. On Wednesday, a tracker from Johns Hopkins University showed over 1 in 4 coronavirus tests coming back positive, over a 7-day moving average. According to the tracker, the state currently has a testing positivity rate of 26.8 percent.
On Tuesday, the state also reported its most deaths on a single day since the start of pandemic. According to a Times database, the state reported 117 new deaths on Tuesday.
In response to the surge in cases across Arizona, Governor Doug Ducey previously halted the loosening of coronavirus restrictions. During a press conference in June, Ducey said that "we can pump the brakes in Arizona."
"This is the time to act and save as many Arizona lives as possible," the Arizona governor added.
Ducey's decision closed down bars, gyms, movie theaters and other businesses, which were previously allowed to reopen during the state's phased reopening plan. During the press conference on June 30, Ducey suggested that the state plans on reopening these establishments in 30 days.
"We're going to be monitoring the data along the way, and we're going to do everything necessary to protect public health," Ducey said.
Ranked behind Arizona in the Times' graph are two U.S. states that have also seen a surge in cases over the past few weeks, Florida and South Carolina.
According to the graph, over the past seven days, Florida has recorded at least 2,700 cases per one million residents and South Carolina has recorded at least 2,300 cases per capita.
In Florida, there are currently at least 223,783 confirmed cases, and the state's department of health recorded 10,044 new cases on Wednesday. While South Carolina currently has at least 48,770 confirmed cases. There are also 3,889 deaths in Florida and 876 in South Carolina, according to the department of health in both states.
Behind the three U.S. states is the country of Bahrain, which, over the past week, has recorded at least 2,200 cases of the novel virus per capita. According to a tracker published by Johns Hopkins University, there are currently at least 30,931 confirmed cases in Bahrain and 101 deaths.
The novel coronavirus, which causes respiratory disease COVID-19, continues to spread throughout the globe. The U.S. has remained the virus' epicenter and the according to the tracker from Johns Hopkins University, currently has over 3 million confirmed cases and at least 132,309 deaths.
Newsweek reached out to the Arizona Department of Health for comment on the number of cases per capita but did not receive a response in time for publication.
