Nearly a year into the coronavirus pandemic, Idaho’s new case numbers crept back upward this week.

On Friday, the state and its seven health districts reported 175,044 confirmed or probable coronavirus cases, a 1.2 percent increase from last week.

Despite the increase in new cases, this metric has remained relatively consistent for more than a month, hovering at or around 2,000 per week.

Saturday marks a one-year anniversary in Idaho’s battle with the pandemic. On the morning of March 13, 2020, Gov. Brad Little issued a statewide coronavirus emergency declaration. At a second news conference later that day, Little confirmed the state’s first coronavirus case.

As that one-year milestone approaches, here’s a look at this week’s key metrics, and the state’s peak numbers.

• Cases: 2,125 this week. One-week peak: 11,279, Dec. 5-11.
• Deaths: 34 this week. One-week peak: 134, Dec. 5-11.
• Vaccine doses administered: 74,296 this week, down slightly from the one-week peak, 74,944, from Feb. 27 through March 5.

Heading into the second year of the pandemic, Little struck a reflective but hopeful tone Tuesday. While mourning the loss of more than 1,900 Idahoans to COVID-19, Little said vaccines offer hope for a return to normal. “We have turned a corner in our pandemic fight, and I believe the worst part is behind us,” Little said in a statement.

Later Tuesday, Little kicked off a virtual news conference, as the state Department of Health and Welfare further accelerated Idaho’s vaccine rollout.

Starting Monday, the vaccine will be available to Idahoans over the age of 55 who have health conditions. Starting March 22, the vaccine will be available to all Idahoans over the age of 55.

Starting on March 29, the state will roll out the vaccine to Idahoans over the age of 45, using a similar two-week schedule.

“It’s been a long and tough year, but we’ve made lots of progress,” said Health and Welfare Director Dave Jeppesen, announcing the new schedule.

The faster rollout won’t affect Idaho K-12 teachers and employees, who have been eligible for the vaccine since January. But it could affect higher education employees and students, who have been in the vaccination queue since December.

On Wednesday, Idaho State University announced plans to resume full-time, in-person instruction in August. University officials cited the widespread coronavirus vaccines, which could be available to all adults by the end of May.

Here are this week’s numbers, and comparisons with the previous week:

Weekly positive test rate, as reported by the state: 4.6 percent for week ending March 6, unchanged from the previous two weeks.