Omicron surge keeps breaking COVID-19 case records
Health officials expect situation to get worse
As the omicron variant surge overwhelms short-staffed hospitals, health officials say it could be some time before Wisconsin sees case counts peak and subsequently decline.
While the exact timeline is hard to predict, the situation will likely worsen in the near future, said Ryan Westergaard, chief medical officer for the state Department of Health Services.
“We’d love to see tomorrow be lower and for today to have been the peak and see less and less in the coming weeks. I don’t think we’re confident that’ll be the case. It wouldn’t shock us if we see higher case numbers this week and next week,” he said in a news conference Thursday.
The state on Thursday reported a new single-day record of 11,547 cases. The seven-day case average of 6,808, also a record high, is an 85% increase in the last month.
The number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 also continued its nearly vertical rise. It was 2,060 on Thursday, including 475 people in intensive care units. That’s more COVID-19 patients in ICUs than at any other point in the pandemic.
On average, one in four people who take a COVID-19 test in Wisconsin is receiving a positive result, according to the latest state data. The positivity rate has been on a steep upward climb since Christmas, soaring past previous all-time highs.
“Omicron is spreading faster than anything we’ve seen before,” Westergaard said.
Westergaard said he was hopeful that once the current surge passed, the pandemic would wane. But, he said, the omicron variant has shown that the future of the coronavirus is unpredictable.
“I’m certainly hopeful that the pandemic is going to wind to a close after we get through this really bad crisis that’s brought on by omicron, which is causing unprecedented waves of new infections,” Westergaard said.
“But there’s no guarantee that future variants might be worse in other ways,” he said. “There’s nothing that says that a future variant won’t have the ability to evade our immune response, be transmitted highly easily and be more virulent or more dangerous.”
State health officials urged people to get the COVID-19 vaccine and booster shot, which reduce the risk of severe infection and death from the virus.
“The large majority of people who are testing positive after vaccine have very mild infections, and that is the power of the vaccines, even if they don’t prevent all infections,” Westergaard said. “The very large majority of people who have life-threatening COVID-19, who are in our ICUs, are unvaccinated.”
It’s important to make sure hospitals have the capacity to care for people with other urgent health issues, Westergaard said.
To address severe staffing shortages in the health care system, DHS on Thursday said it had worked with staffing agencies to hire 567 nurses, nursing assistants and other health care workers since mid-October.
The workers, partially funded by the American Rescue Act, were directed to 72 health care facilities such as hospitals, nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
Milwaukee County leaders issue public health advisory
The 11 top public health officials in Milwaukee County jointly issued a public health “advisory” Thursday as a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations has raised alarms.
The group called on community members “to do their part and take urgent action to prevent additional hospitalization and deaths due to COVID-19.”
“Your help is necessary to reduce the spread and protect our family, friends and community,” they added.
The advisory was supported by leaders of the Cudahy, Franklin, Greenfield,
Milwaukee, Oak Creek, Wauwatosa, North Shore, South Milwaukee/St. Francis, Greendale, Hales Corners and West Allis/West Milwaukee health departments.
In the advisory, the health leaders urged residents to get vaccinated against the virus, wear masks inside, and stay home and get tested if sick.
It also included updated quarantine and isolation guidance:
Those who test positive, regardless of vaccination status, should stay home for at least five days and only leave home with a mask after five days if they no longer have symptoms or “symptoms are resolving,” the notice said.
They should wear a high-quality, well-fitted mask around others for another five days.
Those who are exposed to someone with COVID-19 but who are boosted, completed the two-shot Pfizer or Moderna vaccine series within six months, or completed the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccination within two months should wear a mask around others for 10 days and ideally get tested for the virus on day five.
Those who are exposed but who completed the Pfizer or Moderna series more than six months ago and are not boosted, received the Johnson & Johnson shot more than two months ago or are unvaccinated should stay home for five days and continue to wear a mask around others for another five days. They should also try to get a COVID test on day five.
On Friday, the Milwaukee Common Council committee chaired by Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic will take up pandemicrelated legislation, including one measure that would require masks be worn in buildings open to the public when the virus’s transmission rate is at least 100 new cases per 100,000 county residents.
Dimitrijevic, a mayoral candidate, sponsored the legislation along with Ald. JoCasta Zamarripa. Dimitrijevic has sparred with Milwaukee Health Commissioner Kirsten Johnson over Johnson’s refusal to reissue a health order to trigger the mask ordinance the city currently has in place.
Latest COVID-19 numbers
55
New cases reported: 11,547
New deaths reported, confirmed:
New deaths reported, probable: 2 Number hospitalized: 2,060 (intensive care: 475); up 498 patients from a month ago
Seven-day average of daily cases: 6,808 (up 3,128 cases from one month ago)
Seven-day average of confirmed daily deaths: 30
Seven-day average of new deaths reported within 30 days of death: 21 (down one death from a month ago)
Seven-day average positivity rate: 25.9% of all COVID-19 tests given
Total cases since the start of pandemic: 1,035,542
Total confirmed deaths: 10,253 Total probable deaths: 1,123
Latest vaccine numbers
Total
8,689,956
Daily doses administered: 13,860 Seven-day average of daily doses: 13,977
Total booster doses 1,662,543
Daily booster doses 8,948
Seven-day average booster doses: 9,354
Residents who have received one dose: 3,632,615 (62.3% of the population)
Residents who are fully vaccinated: 3,401,676 (58.3% of the population)
Residents ages 5 to 11 with at least one dose: 106,119 (21.8% of age group)
Residents ages 12 to 17 with at least one dose: 255,913 (57.6% of age group)
Residents ages 18 to 24 with at least one dose: 310,870 (57.1% of age group)
Residents ages 25 to 34 with at least one dose: 455,948 (61.5% of age group)
Residents ages 35 to 44 with at least one dose: 486,043 (67.3% of age group)
Residents ages 45 to 54 with at least one dose: 490,220 (70.1% of age group)
Residents ages 55 to 64 with at least one dose: 631,680 (77% of age group)
Residents 65 and older with at least one dose: 895,806 (85.5% of age group)
doses
administered:
Variant case sequencing
administered:
administered:
of
daily
State and private labs regularly do further tests on a portion of positive COVID-19 samples to find the prevalence of different variants of the virus. The numbers below are just a fraction of the total number of variant cases.
Delta variant was identified in 17.33% of tests sequenced during week starting Dec. 27
Omicron variant was identified in 82.67% of tests sequenced during week starting Dec. 27
The state on Thursday reported a new single-day record of 11,547 cases.