U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday praised Arizona as a “promising model” for its handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic, saying that the state has seen a “decreasing number of cases and hospitalizations without implementing a punishing lockdown.”

The number of COVID-19 cases in Arizona rose to 182,203 on Wednesday after the Department of Health Services reported 1,698 new cases. The state also reported 87 new deaths related to the virus.

He said that rather than a full lockdown, Arizona advised residents to “aggressively social distance,” encouraged mask use, and restricted large gatherings in the state.

Trump said more than 1,000 national guard and medical personnel had been deployed to the state to help in their response to the virus.

Trump also spoke about the efforts to produce a new vaccine against the novel coronavirus and said he has met with scientists and heads of companies who are “getting very close” to developing a successful vaccine.

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