SALT LAKE CITY — After a recent statewide spike of COVID-19 cases, most of Utah will "pause" and stay at the yellow, low-risk level under the state's recovery plan, Gov. Gary Herbert announced Thursday.

State health officials have been investigating a statewide spike in cases since Memorial Day. The state has seen 200-300 new cases every day since the holiday, with some days seeing more than 400 or 500 new cases, Utah Department of Health state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn said.

Thursday, Herbert said no one wants to see the state move out of yellow into the green phase faster than him. But due to the rise in cases, state leaders have decided to hold off on statewide changes for now.

"It gives us pause," Herbert said.

Gov. Gary Herbert and state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn discussed the current coronavirus situation in the state at the weekly health department press conference Thursday afternoon. Watch the replay of the event below.

Kane County requested to move from yellow into green, and the state will grant that request, Herbert said. It will go into effect Friday at 10 a.m.

Bluff and Mexican Hat in San Juan County requested to remain at the orange, medium-risk level, last month when most of the rest of the state moved to yellow. Herbert expects Bluff and Mexican Hat to move to yellow within the next 24 hours.

The rest of the state, except for Salt Lake City, will then be in the yellow, low-risk level, according to state officials.

In another change, state officials have updated the phased health guidelines included in the Utah Leads Together plan to allow for larger gatherings.

Cultural events and activities will now be allowed in areas that are in the yellow designation, Dunn said. Such gatherings in indoor venues will be allowed for up to 3,000 attendees, and outdoor venues will be able to host up to 6,000 attendees, she added.

New COVID-19 cases

Utah’s number of COVID-19 cases has increased by 388 from Wednesday, with three new reported deaths, according to the Utah Department of Health.

Thursday’s totals give Utah 13,252 total confirmed cases, with 968 total hospitalizations and 131 total deaths from the disease. Previously, there were 12,864 cases in the state.

Two of the deaths reported Thursday were from Salt Lake County, according to state health officials. One was a woman who was over the age of 85 and was a resident of a long-term care facility. The other person was a man who was between the ages of 60 and 85 who was hospitalized at the time of his death.

The third reported death was a Utah County man who was between the ages of 18 and 60. He was hospitalized when he died.

The new numbers indicate a 3.0% increase in positive cases since Wednesday. Of the 254,668 tests conducted in Utah so far, 5.2% were positive for COVID-19. There were 4,908 tests conducted between Wednesday and Thursday, according to the health department.

The total number of cases reported by the health department includes all cases of COVID-19 since Utah’s outbreak began, including those who are infected now, those who have recovered from the disease, and those who have died.

The state now estimates there are 5,376 active cases of COVID-19 in Utah. Another 7,745 cases are estimated to be recoveries. Anyone who was diagnosed with the disease three or more weeks ago who has not died is considered recovered.

Fourteen more people were hospitalized from Wednesday to Thursday, and there are currently 119 people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Utah, health officials report.

Statewide spike in COVID-19 not over, but some recent stabilization

State officials haven't indicated the spike in COVID-19 cases has ended. The spike has included multiple hotspots from Logan to St. George, but has largely been a phenomenon throughout the entire state, Dunn said.

Southwest Utah is also being hit particularly hard over the past several weeks, she said.

However, she said Thursday the last few days have seen some stabilization that suggests the state may have moved back to a plateau scenario. The current plateau is still higher than plateaus seen before Memorial Day, though, Dunn added.

The positive test rates before Memorial Day were mostly between 4% and 4.5%, according to Dunn. In the weeks since the holiday, positive rates have been up to 7-10%.

A combination of reasons is to blame for the recent spike, Dunn said. More people are gathering, and fewer people are socially distancing. Workplaces have also been a source of COVID-19 spread as the economy has started to reopen, she added.

But state officials expected this, Dunn said. They knew a rise in cases was possible when social distancing restrictions started being loosened.

People are still asked to take seriously the precautions laid out by the state. Wear a mask in public if social distancing isn't possible, practice good hand hygiene and stay home if you're sick, Dunn said.

"We need to learn to live with this virus," she said.

Governor still predicts quick recovery for Utah

Herbert also encouraged people to continue wearing masks.

He said that he does not want to make masks mandatory for Utahns under state law, but he highly encourages people to wear them in public places.

He compared masks to sunscreen. If it were sunny and hot, state health officials would recommend people wear sunscreen to protect themselves. In the case of COVID-19, though, you're not just protecting yourself when you wear a mask — you're also protecting others around you, Herbert said.

“We’re not trying to violate anybody’s civil rights," he said. "We’re trying to give you guidance on what is good counsel."

Despite the recent rise in cases and the upcoming "pause," Herbert said he believes Utah is still on track for a strong and speedy recovery.

“All of us need to work together the best we can," he said. "We’ll get there quicker than any other state."

Related topics