Colorado’s COVID-19 numbers have stabilized in recent days after a period of sustained growth, but the number of outbreaks statewide grew this week and long-term care facilities account for nearly a third of all clusters here.

Outbreaks had held relatively flat, hovering between 120 and 130 active clusters, since the beginning of July, according to state data updated every Wednesday. They had spiked amid the fourth wave of the spring but had steadily dropped between May and a month ago. But they’ve climbed again of late and now number 145. More than 32% of those are in nursing homes and assisted-living centers, and those facilities account for the largest share of clusters statewide. Only child care center outbreaks, of which there are 14, come close.

There are 47 long-term care outbreaks in all, up from 39 last week. Though mortality even among the state’s oldest residents has plummeted since the introduction of the vaccine, the facilities are still among the most at-risk for outbreaks and severe disease, given their population of older, more chronically ill residents. Vaccines have been pushed heavily in nursing homes and assisted-living centers. As of late last month, 70% of staff members in those facilities statewide have been vaccinated.

The largest active long-term care outbreak is in Colorado Springs: The Parkmoor Village Healthcare Center has 66 cases – 40 resident and 26 staff – associated with its cluster, which has also led to four resident deaths. El Paso County continues to lead the state in COVID-19 deaths. As of Wednesday, 1,060 residents of the county have died due to the disease, 25% higher than Denver’s death toll. More than one in seven Colorado COVID-19 deaths have occurred in El Paso County.

The new Amazon facility in El Paso County also identified an outbreak over the past week: Fourteen employees there have tested positive for the virus.

The outbreak associated with the All-Star Game grew slightly week over week, from 30 to 32. The cluster tied to a July Red Rocks concert also grew by two, from 14 to 16 cases. 

The growth in outbreak comes amid a sustained period of elevated spread statewide. Between July 10 and Aug. 8, the state’s seven-day average of new daily cases climbed from roughly 339 to 952. The numbers in early July were the lowest since September 2020, but the numbers now are more than double what they were at this point a year ago.

Still, the numbers have steadied in recent days. After three weeks of consistent growth, the average has hovered between 920 and 952 over the past week. 

The positivity rate remains high, though: The average over the past seven days is 5.58%, slightly down from Tuesday’s number but still well above any point since the first week of May.

Hospitalizations, closely watched as a sign of the pandemic’s strain on the health care system, have also ticked up: As of Wednesday afternoon, 561 Coloradans are hospitalized with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 infections. That total has also steadily climbed since mid-July, when 313 residents in the hospital. 

Officials now say the delta variant, which is more contagious and severe than previous strains of the disease, has been detected in nearly every sample the state has randomly sequenced. In an email Monday night, Boulder County Public Health said it had risen to 100% of all samples collected. As of Wednesday afternoon, the state reported that 99% of the random samples collected in the last week of July were positive for the variant.