State Hits New High in COVID-19 Cases
Number tested is higher, but so is percent of positive cases. Disease spreading in state.
COVID-19. Credit: U.S. Army.
Newly-released data from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services that testing is increasing for COVID-19 and so is the percentage of cases coming back as positive.
The two figures combined to set a record for newly-confirmed cases in a single day at 460, a 38 percent increase over the previous high of 331.
DHS reported 3,632 tests processed in the past 24 hours, a six percent increase over the previous high of 3,421.
And of those 3,632 tests, 12.67 percent came back positive, the highest single-day percentage recorded since the state began reporting data on March 4th.
“The trend is the important thing,” said Dr. Ryan Westergaard, Chief Medical Officer of the DHS Bureau of Communicable Diseases, during a briefing Wednesday. “We want to see a sustained move in the right direction. We have been a little flat going between nine and 11 percent.” Including the newly released figures, tests over the last week have had a 9.81 percent positive rate, above the April average of 9.57 percent.
DHS continues to report a daily testing capacity of 11,047 tests across 50 labs.
The death toll from the virus has reached 327, with 11 new deaths in the past 24 hours. DHS reports that 186 of the deaths have occurred in Milwaukee County. The county’s residents represent 3,044 of the 7,314 confirmed cases according to state data. Testing access has increased in Milwaukee with community health centers and Walgreens launching drive-thru testing.
The gap between the percentage of residents with a confirmed case between Milwaukee and Brown counties to grow. Brown County, which is anchored by Green Bay, now has 452.3 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 406.9 yesterday). Milwaukee County has 319 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 308.1). On April 16th, Brown County had only 53.5 cases per 100,000 residents while Milwaukee had 204. Brown County has now reported five deaths.
Kenosha County has the third-highest rate at 283.4 cases per 100,000 residents, an almost 70-case day-over-day increase as residents of the county’s correctional facilities were tested. Racine (201.1), Walworth (166) and Rock (137.2) are the only other counties with more than 100 cases per 100,000 residents, but the statewide average has risen to 126.6 (up from 118.6). We have included a map of these percentages by county in a map below for the first time.
Charts and Maps
Wisconsin COVID-19 summary
| Status | Number (%) of People as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|
| Negative Test Results | 72,566 |
| Positive Test Results | 7,314 |
| Hospitalizations | 1,544 (21%) |
| Deaths | 327 |
Percent of COVID-19 cases by hospitalization status
| Hospitilization status | Number of confirmed cases as of 5/1/2020 | Percent of confirmed cases as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Ever hospitalized | 1,544 | 21% |
| Never hospitalized | 4,215 | 58% |
| Unknown | 1,555 | 21% |
| Total | 7,314 | 100% |
Summary of COVID-19 cases by age group
| Age Group (Years) | Cases as of 5/1/2020 | Ever hospitalized as of 5/1/2020 | Any Intensive Care as of 5/1/2020 | Deaths as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <10 | 73 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 10-19 | 208 | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| 20-29 | 1084 | 60 | 8 | 3 |
| 30-39 | 1199 | 98 | 19 | 4 |
| 40-49 | 1277 | 161 | 37 | 9 |
| 50-59 | 1320 | 274 | 77 | 30 |
| 60-69 | 1010 | 338 | 110 | 52 |
| 70-79 | 596 | 316 | 82 | 101 |
| 80-89 | 379 | 209 | 42 | 80 |
| 90+ | 168 | 71 | 15 | 48 |
| Total | 7,314 | 1,544 | 391 | 327 |
Percent of COVID-19 cases and deaths by gender
| Gender | Confirmed Cases as of 5/1/2020 | Deaths as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Female | 51% | 39% |
| Male | 49% | 61% |
| Total Number | 7,314 | 327 |
Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by race
| Race | Number of cases as of 5/1/2020 | Percent of cases as of 5/1/2020 | Number of deaths as of 5/1/2020 | Percent of deaths as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Indian | 69 | 1% | 4 | 1% |
| Asian or Pacific Islander | 238 | 3% | 5 | 2% |
| Black | 1,667 | 23% | 104 | 32% |
| White | 3,866 | 53% | 201 | 61% |
| Multiple or Other races | 601 | 8% | 2 | 1% |
| Unknown | 873 | 12% | 11 | 3% |
| Total | 7,314 | 100% | 327 | 100% |
Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by ethnicity
| Ethnicity | Number of cases as of 5/1/2020 | Percent of cases as of 5/1/2020 | Number of deaths as of 5/1/2020 | Percent of deaths as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hispanic or Latino | 1,878 | 26% | 20 | 6% |
| Not Hispanic or Latino | 4,539 | 62% | 286 | 87% |
| Unknown | 897 | 12% | 21 | 6% |
| Total | 7,314 | 100% | 327 | 100% |
Number of positive cases and deaths by county
| Wisconsin County | Positive as of 5/1/2020 | Negative as of 5/1/2020 | Deaths as of 5/1/2020 | Rate (positive cases per 100,000 people) as of 5/1/2020 | Case fatality percentage (percent of cases who died) as of 5/1/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adams | 4 | 169 | 1 | 19.9 | 25% |
| Ashland | 2 | 137 | 0 | 12.7 | 0% |
| Barron | 6 | 764 | 0 | 13.3 | 0% |
| Bayfield | 3 | 193 | 1 | 20.0 | 33% |
| Brown | 1,175 | 3,207 | 5 | 452.3 | 0% |
| Buffalo | 4 | 192 | 1 | 30.4 | 25% |
| Burnett | 0 | 95 | 0 | 0.0 | 0% |
| Calumet | 14 | 384 | 0 | 28.1 | 0% |
| Chippewa | 23 | 1,025 | 0 | 36.1 | 0% |
| Clark | 20 | 234 | 4 | 58.0 | 20% |
| Columbia | 28 | 806 | 1 | 49.2 | 4% |
| Crawford | 3 | 229 | 0 | 18.4 | 0% |
| Dane | 430 | 10,982 | 23 | 81.2 | 5% |
| Dodge | 36 | 964 | 1 | 41.0 | 3% |
| Door | 12 | 151 | 2 | 43.7 | 17% |
| Douglas | 9 | 509 | 0 | 20.7 | 0% |
| Dunn | 9 | 988 | 0 | 20.2 | 0% |
| Eau Claire | 28 | 1,966 | 0 | 27.2 | 0% |
| Florence | 2 | 22 | 0 | 46.1 | 0% |
| Fond du Lac | 71 | 1,426 | 3 | 69.4 | 4% |
| Forest | 0 | 73 | 0 | 0.0 | 0% |
| Grant | 41 | 792 | 6 | 79.1 | 15% |
| Green | 13 | 355 | 0 | 35.3 | 0% |
| Green Lake | 3 | 186 | 0 | 16.0 | 0% |
| Iowa | 7 | 278 | 0 | 29.6 | 0% |
| Iron | 2 | 40 | 1 | 35.0 | 50% |
| Jackson | 13 | 319 | 1 | 63.4 | 8% |
| Jefferson | 46 | 951 | 0 | 54.3 | 0% |
| Juneau | 17 | 371 | 1 | 64.3 | 6% |
| Kenosha | 477 | 2,018 | 13 | 283.4 | 3% |
| Kewaunee | 13 | 138 | 1 | 63.9 | 8% |
| La Crosse | 28 | 2,166 | 0 | 23.8 | 0% |
| Lafayette | 6 | 130 | 0 | 35.9 | 0% |
| Langlade | 0 | 125 | 0 | 0.0 | 0% |
| Lincoln | 1 | 180 | 0 | 3.6 | 0% |
| Manitowoc | 11 | 399 | 1 | 13.9 | 9% |
| Marathon | 18 | 743 | 1 | 13.3 | 6% |
| Marinette | 10 | 389 | 1 | 24.7 | 10% |
| Marquette | 3 | 172 | 1 | 19.7 | 33% |
| Menominee | 1 | 67 | 0 | 21.8 | 0% |
| Milwaukee | 3,044 | 15,317 | 186 | 319.0 | 6% |
| Monroe | 14 | 780 | 1 | 30.8 | 7% |
| Oconto | 14 | 311 | 0 | 37.3 | 0% |
| Oneida | 6 | 289 | 0 | 17.0 | 0% |
| Outagamie | 62 | 1,381 | 2 | 33.6 | 3% |
| Ozaukee | 88 | 921 | 9 | 99.7 | 10% |
| Pepin | 0 | 119 | 0 | 0.0 | 0% |
| Pierce | 10 | 429 | 0 | 24.0 | 0% |
| Polk | 4 | 307 | 0 | 9.2 | 0% |
| Portage | 5 | 309 | 0 | 7.1 | 0% |
| Price | 1 | 93 | 0 | 7.4 | 0% |
| Racine | 393 | 2,447 | 13 | 201.1 | 3% |
| Richland | 12 | 259 | 2 | 68.4 | 17% |
| Rock | 222 | 2,095 | 6 | 137.2 | 3% |
| Rusk | 4 | 123 | 0 | 28.2 | 0% |
| Sauk | 58 | 870 | 3 | 91.2 | 5% |
| Sawyer | 3 | 262 | 0 | 18.3 | 0% |
| Shawano | 15 | 354 | 0 | 36.6 | 0% |
| Sheboygan | 49 | 902 | 2 | 42.5 | 4% |
| St. Croix | 16 | 537 | 0 | 18.2 | 0% |
| Taylor | 0 | 109 | 0 | 0.0 | 0% |
| Trempealeau | 3 | 514 | 0 | 10.2 | 0% |
| Vernon | 1 | 422 | 0 | 3.3 | 0% |
| Vilas | 4 | 145 | 0 | 18.5 | 0% |
| Walworth | 171 | 875 | 8 | 166.0 | 5% |
| Washburn | 1 | 171 | 0 | 6.4 | 0% |
| Washington | 99 | 1,724 | 4 | 73.6 | 4% |
| Waukesha | 350 | 3,849 | 20 | 87.7 | 6% |
| Waupaca | 10 | 381 | 1 | 19.4 | 10% |
| Waushara | 2 | 181 | 0 | 8.3 | 0% |
| Winnebago | 62 | 1,271 | 1 | 36.5 | 2% |
| Wood | 2 | 484 | 0 | 2.7 | 0% |
| Total | 7,314 | 72,566 | 327 | 126.6 | 4% |
-Data from the State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services.
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