WISCONSIN among latest COVID-19 hotspots

[AHE]

Hospitals in Wisconsin are seeing record numbers of COVID-19 patients, the consequence of weeks of unchecked spread of the pandemic across the state.

The increase has put hospitals at or above 90 percent of their capacity in some regions, and workers are putting into place surge plans they made months ago in the first stage of the pandemic, but haven't had to use until now.

"We're in the surge," said Tammy Simon, the vice president of patient safety at Marshfield Clinic. "Our numbers are at an all-time high in our system."

They are at an all-time high across the state. According to data from the Wisconsin Hospital Association, as of Thursday, 1,453 people were hospitalized with COVID-19. There were 330 patients in intensive care units, the second-highest that number has been in the pandemic following a decline from Wednesday’s total of 339 patients in the ICU.

Because hospitalizations tend to lag several weeks behind new infections, the burden on hospitals across the state is likely to increase. For the first time this week, the seven-day average of new infections in the state topped 4,000 per day.

https://www.wpr.org/were-surge-wisconsi ... 9-patients

[AHE]

The number of positive cases of COVID-19 in Wisconsin rose by 5,278 on Saturday, Oct. 31 -- a single-day record -- officials with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) reported, for a total of 225,370.

Previously, a record 5,262 new cases had been reported on Oct. 27. Saturday's reported rise marks the third time in five days -- and since the onset of the pandemic -- that at least 5,000 new COVID-19 cases have been reported by the Wisconsin DHS in a single day.

The DHS also reported 59 additional coronavirus-related deaths on Saturday -- the second-most reported in a single day thus far.

Among those who have tested positive for COVID-19 in Wisconsin, 11,374 have required hospitalization (5%)

There are 46,833 active cases in the state according to the DHS (21.3%).

https://www.fox6now.com/news/wisconsin- ... aths-up-59

[AHE]

Wisconsin reported its worst week so far in the pandemic with an average of 4,385 cases per day and more than 38 deaths per day. There are more than 1,500 currently hospitalized.

DHS reported an additional 16 new deaths due to COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. The total death toll is now 2,047.

DHS reported a record 3,493 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Sunday. In the last week, the state has averaged 4,385 new cases per day or 30,697 total new cases.

The Wisconsin Hospital Association today reported an additional 123 people have been hospitalized with COVID-19 in the state.

There are currently 1,534 individuals hospitalized and 347 of them are in intensive care.

There are currently 47,551 active cases in the state.

https://shepherdexpress.com/news/happen ... /questions

[AHE]

Wisconsin's average COVID-19 test positivity rate topped 30% for the first time Monday as the state continued to contend with one of the country's worst coronavirus outbreaks.

The average positivity rate of 30.1% reported by the state Department of Health Services looks at first-time positive tests over the last seven days.

The state also reported 3,433 new cases and 5,413 new negative tests. The death toll rose by three to 2,050.

Still, the average number of new daily cases over the last seven days hit an all-time high Monday of 4,463. Two months ago, the seven-day average was six times smaller, with about 695 new cases per day.

The average daily death toll over the last seven days was 37. Two months ago, it was six.

A surge in hospitalizations and deaths has followed the meteoric rise in cases the state has seen in the last two months. Health experts expect the numbers to worsen in coming weeks.

https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/loc ... 127910002/

[AHE]

Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported 5,771 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, surpassing a previous record that was only set on Saturday, WISN 12 News notes.

The Badger State also reported 52 new deaths and 247 new hospitalizations from the virus.

Overall, there have been 238,067 cases in Wisconsin since the pandemic began, and 2,102 people have died. Seventy-one of the state’s 72 counties have reported deaths as of Tuesday.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watc ... irus-cases

[AHE]

More than 5,000 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed throughout Wisconsin on Wednesday, according to state and county health officials.

The state has reached an all-time total of 245,385* cases, with an additional 5,848* recorded in the past 24 hours. More than 52,000, or 21.5% of cases are still active.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the state Department of Health Services said all of Wisconsin’s 72 counties have “very high” activity levels for disease spread.

At least 2,192* people in Wisconsin have died of coronavirus complications, with 43 more deaths confirmed Wednesday.

DHS officials said 243 people were hospitalized since Tuesday afternoon, which is roughly the same as the previous day’s hospitalization count. With 11,147 hospital beds, 13% remain available for new patients.

https://www.channel3000.com/all-but-2-w ... -dhs-says/

[AHE]

Wisconsin’s chief health officer quit Thursday as COVID-19 continues to run rampant across the state.

State Health Officer and DHS Interim Division of Public Health Administrator Stephanie Smiley announced her resignation effective Nov. 11 in a letter to local health departments.

The DHS reported an additional 5,922 confirmed cases Thursday, just 17 cases shy of the daily case record of 5,935 set Wednesday.

The state has now seen 249,924 cases since the pandemic began in March. The disease was a factor in another 38 deaths Thursday.

https://www.nbc15.com/2020/11/05/wiscon ... -19-rages/

[AHE]

Wisconsin passed another undesirable milestone in the coronavirus pandemic, confirming more than 6,000 coronavirus cases in 24 hours.

The Department of Health Services reported 6,141 new cases. The state received a near-record 20,785 test results by Friday’s deadline and almost 30% of them (29.55%) were positive.

The state also passed 2,200 COVID-19 deaths with 62 added to the death toll Friday. That’s 100 more deaths since Tuesday. At the current rate, COVID-19 could pass Alzheimer’s disease as the 6th leading cause of death in Wisconsin next week, less than 8 months after the first deaths were reported March 19, compared with CDC mortality data for an entire year.

The 7-day average for new cases is 5,139, the first time that metric was over 5,000. The 7-day average for the positivity rate is 32.20%, which is also a new high.

The state reported 244 more COVID-19 patients were hospitalized in the past 24 hours, shy of the one-day record of 247 hospitalizations. That brought hospitalizations to new highs Friday with the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA) reporting 1,787 COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized, including 385 in intensive care.

There have now been 12,554 patients with COVID-19 symptoms serious enough to require hospital treatment. That’s 4.9% of all the known coronavirus cases.

Friday there were 5 patients at the alternate care facility (ACF) field hospital at the Wisconsin State Fair Park near Milwaukee, the same as Thursday.

According to state numbers, 55,684 people are currently active coronavirus cases, meaning they were diagnosed within the last 30 days and haven’t been medically cleared.

https://www.wbay.com/2020/11/06/wiscons ... rus-cases/

[AHE]

Wisconsin health officials reported more than 7,000 new COVID-19 cases — another new daily record.

Saturday's total of 7,065 confirmed infections is more than 900 cases higher than the previous record, set Friday with 6,141 cases, according to the state Department of Health Services.

The state first passed 6,000 daily cases on Friday, and Tuesday and Wednesday of this week also saw record-setting numbers of new cases.

The 7,065 positive cases made up 37% of the 18,928 test results reported Saturday by the state health department. The seven-day average of new cases also rose again, hitting 5,394, which is the highest weekly average to date, according to DHS.

The state health department also reported 45 more people have died, bringing the state's death toll to 2,301.

1,787 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19 across the state, according to the Wisconsin Hospital Association. Of those patients, 385 are in an intensive care unit. An additional 277 hospitalized patients were waiting for the results of a COVID-19 test.

https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/202 ... 204224002/

[AHE]

Wisconsin health officials on Sunday reported more than 4,000 new cases of the coronavirus, a day after the state set a new daily record with more than 7,000 positive tests..

The state showed a positivity rate of 33.5% from the 12,761 tests that were processed in the last day. More than 267,000 cases have been recorded since the start of the pandemic.

There were 1,180 new cases per 100,000 people in Wisconsin over the past two weeks, which ranks third in the country behind North Dakota and South Dakota for new cases per capita, Johns Hopkins University researchers reported.

Officials confirmed 11 new deaths, bringing the state's death toll to 2,312. That is the 26th highest per capita in the country in the last two weeks.

As of Saturday afternoon, 1,806 people were hospitalized due to complications from COVID-19. Of those, 373 people were in intensive care units.

https://www.startribune.com/wisconsin-w ... 573009861/

[AHE]

Wisconsin for the first time on Monday reported more than 2,000 people were hospitalized with the virus.

The state's spiraling public health crisis continues to rank among the most dire in the country.

The 2,003 COVID-19 patients receiving hospital care Monday in Wisconsin is a jump of more than 350 patients in the last week and a 560% increase over the last two months.

The state Department of Health Services on Monday also reported 4,360 new cases and 17 deaths, bringing the death toll to 2,329.

As a direct result of the surge in cases that began in early September, hospitalizations and deaths are rising fast. And because cases have continued their steep ascent, health experts expect the state's crisis will worsen.

Hospitals across the state are facing bed space issues and critical staffing shortages as hundreds of health care workers are forced to quarantine at home after being exposed or infected in their communities.

Included in the 2,003 hospitalized COVID-19 patients are the 396 patients in intensive care units, down one from a record high Sunday.

The average daily death toll over the last seven days was 40; two months ago, it was six.

https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/202 ... 221256002/

[AHE]

After two days reporting less than 5,000 new coronavirus cases, the coronavirus crisis in Wisconsin jumped back up Tuesday with new one-day records in cases, deaths and hospitalizations.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported 7,073 confirmed cases, 66 deaths, and 291 hospitalizations for COVID-19 in its daily report.

The state received 19,999 test results in the last 24-hour period. The 7,073 positive tests were 35.37% of the results -- known as the positivity rate.

The 66 deaths added Tuesday is almost as many as the last 3 days combined, and passes the record 64 deaths added on October 27. The death rate held steady at .86% of all known coronavirus cases. The 7-day average for deaths is 42, which is an all-time high.

There have now been 2,395 deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. COVID-19 is catching up to the 2,453 Alzheimer’s disease deaths in 2018 to become the 6th leading cause of death in Wisconsin less than 8 months, compared with CDC mortality data for an entire year.

Almost 62,000 people in Wisconsin (61,944) are active cases right now. They were diagnosed in the last 30 days, since October 11, and weren’t medically cleared.

Other figures Tuesday show 8.7% of the state’s ICU beds are open. That’s 128 out of 1,469 beds. Overall, 9.9% of the state’s hospital beds are open for ICU, intermediate care, medical surgical and negative flow isolation.

https://www.wbay.com/2020/11/10/wiscons ... lizations/

[AHE]

So many counties are so far past the Dept. of Health Services' highest classification for case activity, that it needed to create a brand new category.

“Far too many of our communities are in a dire situation,” DHS Deputy Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk said. “To put these new data in perspective, Wisconsin is now seeing more average cases per day than New York City did at the peak of its surge last spring.”

For the entire state of Wisconsin, its burden sits at 1,310.6 cases per 100,000 residents, with DHS noting that figure has jumped nearly 25 percent in the past two weeks alone. The seven day rolling average of new cases hit an all-time high Wednesday, pushing 6,000 cases over the previous week as the state recorded back-to-back 7,000+ cases days.

https://www.nbc15.com/2020/11/12/covid- ... -category/

[AHE]

Wisconsin is regularly reporting more new COVID-19 cases each day than New York City was logging at the peak of its coronavirus surge in the spring.

Wisconsin's seven-day average on Wednesday was 5,984 — an all-time high for the state, and one of the highest in the country.

The seven-day case average, a measure meant to smooth out anomalies in the data and indicate trends, has jumped by more than 1,000 in the last week and by 500% in the last two months.

"Because of these critically high levels of disease, public health can no longer adequately contact trace, hospital beds are filled with patients with COVID-19, and too many Wisconsin families are losing loved ones to this virus," she said.

It is the third time in five days the state has reported more than 7,000 new cases in a day.

The last week has been the worst of the pandemic. Wisconsin has reported nearly 42,000 new cases in the last seven days as well as 301 deaths.

Statewide, 90% of hospital beds are in use, according to state data, and only 121 ICU beds remain available — a supply expected to disappear within days if current trends continue.

As of Wednesday, there were 2,102 people hospitalized with the virus, including 441 patients in intensive care units. Both numbers were all-time highs.

Hospitalizations have increased more than six-fold in the last two months, and deaths have jumped seven-fold.

Over the last week the state has reported an average of 43 deaths from the virus each day. Two months ago, it was reporting about six deaths each day.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/202 ... 254610002/

[AHE]

"All hospitals across the state are either at or nearing capacity," Casey told "The News with Shepard Smith." "Today we had a record number of Covid-19 cases, 7,500, and two weeks ago it was half of that, and this is straining us almost to capacity."

According to the Wisconsin Department of Health, there are 293,388 confirmed cases in the state with 43,001 cases in just the past seven days. That is up 9,135 compared to the previous week.

"Wear a mask, socially distance, wash your hands -- all these things are extremely important right now."

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/busines ... s/2720759/

[AHE]

Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported at least 7,777 cases on Friday — an increase from 7,497 positive cases on Thursday. The latest cases bring the total number, to date, to more than 300,000.

"It took 7 months to get to 100,000 cases, 36 days to hit 200,000, and only 18 days to get to 300,000," the department tweeted.

There are 14 patients in the Alternate Care Facility at Wisconsin State Fair Par. The facility has 530 patient spaces, 296 of which include in-line oxygen care in a non-traditional, temporary environment.

https://patch.com/wisconsin/across-wi/a ... -wisconsin

[AHE]

Wisconsin health officials reported 6,058 new cases of the coronavirus and 12 deaths Sunday.

Reported cases Friday set a record for the most single-day new coronavirus cases at 7,777. The old record of 7,497 was set on Thursday.

The seven-day positivity rate held steady at 18.6%. The state has recorded a total of 312,369 cases and 2,637 deaths from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

https://abc7chicago.com/health/wi-repor ... s/7989792/

[AHE]

State and county health officials recorded 5,350* new cases of the virus Monday. According to DHS, the seven-day average of new cases per day has grown to 6,426.

Health officials said Wisconsin has reached a lifetime total of 317,820* confirmed cases. More than 70,000, or 22.2% of those cases are still active.

Thirty more people in Wisconsin have died of coronavirus complications, bringing the state’s death toll to 2,704*. An additional 118 have been hospitalized, and 14% of the state’s 11,117 hospital beds remain available.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is considering whether to strike down the statewide mask mandate put in place by Gov. Tony Evers. The mandate has been challenged by state Republicans who deem the requirement as an “unconstitutional overreach of power.”

https://www.channel3000.com/thousands-o ... -above-36/

[AHE]

Wisconsin set new records for COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations Tuesday and was back over 7,000 new coronavirus cases after receiving a record number of tests.

The Department of Health Services reported 92 deaths added to the death toll. The previous record was 66 exactly one week ago. To date, 2,741 people have died from COVID-19 in the state.

The state further says 318 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized in the last 24-hour period. The previous record was 291 on Nov. 10.

There were 431 patients in ICU Tuesday afternoon, 25 fewer than Monday. To help ease the strain and free up beds at other hospitals, Children’s Wisconsin announced it will start accepting young adult patients as old as 26. The alternate care facility set up on the Wisconsin state fairgrounds is up to 23, four more than Monday.

In Tuesday’s update, the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA) said the state’s 134 hospitals had 139 ICU beds open -- 9.5% of the state’s 1,466 ICU beds. Counting all types of beds -- ICU, intermediate care, medical surgical and negative flow isolation -- 11.1% of the state’s hospital beds are open. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re all available to patients if hospitals don’t have staffing to support them.

https://www.wbay.com/2020/11/17/wiscons ... lizations/

[AHE]

Wisconsin confirmed a record 7,989 coronavirus cases in one 24-hour period Wednesday, about 900 more cases than the day before and 212 cases more than the previous record. Every Wisconsin county confirmed new cases, and only four counties had single-digit increases.

To offer some perspective, Wisconsin confirmed more COVID-19 cases in the last 18 days than it had in the first 231 days since the virus reached Wisconsin (105,932 cases, February 5 - Sept. 23) and more than the entire month of October (103,072). Wisconsin is currently averaging 6,564 new cases every day.

The 20,129 tests had a positivity rate close to 40% (39.69%). The remaining 12,140 tests were negative. To date, 331,837 people have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus in Wisconsin while more than 2 million have tested negative.

The state recorded 52 more deaths, bringing the death toll to 2,793.

There were 283 people hospitalized for COVID-19 in the past 24-hour period, the third-most on record. We expect updated figures on current hospitalizations later Wednesday afternoon.

The Wisconsin Hospital Association says 2,217 people are currently hospitalized for COVID-19, down from its peak of 2,277 on Tuesday, taking deaths and hospital discharges into account. There were 428 COVID-19 patients in intensive care.

https://www.wbay.com/2020/11/18/wiscons ... ay-record/

[AHE]

The state suffered a record-high 92 COVID-19 deaths over the past 24 hours. According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), the seven-day average of new deaths reported increased by 880 percent in the past two months.

At the beginning of September, Wisconsin was averaging about 700 cases a day. This week the state was averaging more than 6,800.

Wisconsin's reported deaths exceeded the sum of those in New Zealand, Singapore and Iceland combined.

New Zealand, Singapore and Iceland have seen a low death toll throughout the pandemic and reported 25, 28 and 25, respectively in 2020, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Adding the number of deaths from New Zealand, Singapore and Iceland total to 78, which is 14 less than that of Wisconsin on November 17.

https://www.newsweek.com/wisconsin-repo ... 20-1548194

[AHE]

More than 80 Wisconsinites have died of coronavirus complications since Wednesday afternoon, according to the latest data from state and county health officials.

There were 81 new deaths confirmed in the past day, which puts the statewide death toll at 2,932*. The virus continues to put a strain on hospitals, as the state Department of Health Services said 236 more people were hospitalized in the past day. With 11,276 hospital beds throughout the state, 11% remain available for new patients.

Health officials recorded 6,441* new cases of the virus Thursday, one day after Wisconsin experienced a record-breaking amount of new cases. A total of 339,934* cases have been confirmed across the state since the start of the pandemic, and more than 75,000 cases remain active.

https://www.channel3000.com/several-mor ... se-spread/

[AHE]

Wisconsin reported 78 deaths from the coronavirus Friday, capping the deadliest week of the pandemic.

The state Department of Health Services has reported 381 coronavirus deaths in the last week, the most ever in a seven-day period.

The state also logged 6,473 new COVID-19 cases Friday. The death toll rose to 2,954.

Last Friday, the state passed 300,000 total COVID-19 cases in record time. A week later, the state has reached about 345,000 cases.

Friday's toll of 78 deaths ranks third-highest of all time, with the two higher days both coming within the last week.

The average daily death toll over the last seven days was 54, a new record; two months ago, just before the surge of deaths began in Wisconsin, it was five.

And as of Thursday, there were 2,104 people hospitalized with the virus, including 427 patients in intensive care units.

https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/202 ... 361574002/

[AHE]

On Saturday, the Department of Health Services (DHS) reported another 51 deaths, causing the state to cross the 3,000 cumulative death mark.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported 17,893 new coronavirus test results in the past 24-hour period, with 6,224 tests positive -- a positivity rate of 34.78%.

The 7-day average for new cases increased to 6,408 following a two day decline.

Wisconsin’s newly reported 51 deaths bring the cumulative death toll to 3,005. COVID-19 is currently the fourth leading cause of death in Wisconsin. The state is averaging 54 deaths per day over the last 7 days, holding steady from Friday’s average, which was an increase from Thursday’s 7-day average of 52.

The state says 15,734 people have been hospitalized for COVID-19 treatment since the first coronavirus case was confirmed in Madison less than 10 months ago.

A total 351,169 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Wisconsin.

According to the Wisconsin Hospital Association, as of Saturday the state’s 134 hospitals have 169 open ICU beds, or 11.53% of the state’s ICU beds. It further indicates 13.8% of all hospital beds are open for intensive care, intermediate care, medical surgical and negative flow isolation.

https://www.wbay.com/2020/11/21/dhs-wis ... milestone/

[AHE]

The state Department of Health Services reported 3,507 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, the lowest number of new cases in a single day since Nov. 2. The seven-day positivity rate is still at 6,043.

The new infections bring the total number of COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin up to 354,676.

The number of hospitalizations decreased by two Sunday to a total of 1,988 patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Of those, 428 were in the ICU.

https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/heal ... b1ec4.html