Wisconsin Sets New COVID-19 Testing High

Wisconsin set a new single-day COVID-19 testing record according to data released Thursday afternoon by the Department of Health Services.

DHS reported that 5,860 tests were processed in the past 24 hours, above the 14-day average of 4,116 tests.

But the surge in testing wasn’t accompanied by a drop in the percentage of tests coming back positive. A total of 373 new cases were confirmed, a 6.37 percent rate, above yesterday’s report of 6.25 percent, but below the seven and 14-day averages of 6.51 and 7.67 percent.

Wisconsin is currently in compliance with four of the six metrics in the Badger Bounce Back plan, down one from yesterday. The trend downward in the number of emergency department visits with suspected COVID-19 related concerns over the last 14 days is no longer statistically significant. The criteria, which were to be used to reopen the state in a phased manner before the Supreme Court invalidated the Safer at Home order, come from the White House.

The testing total comes as the Wisconsin National Guard has collected over 4,000 specimens at testing sites each day for the past three days. Other private facilities, including clinics and hospitals, are also collecting specimens for testing.

The reported testing capacity for the state has fallen in recent days from 13,797 to 13,372. “When I talked to folks this morning, it sounds like we do have a couple of labs that are expecting a reagent shortage,” said DHS Secretary-designee Andrea Palm during a Thursday afternoon press briefing.

The hospitalization rate for the disease over the length of the outbreak stands at 17 percent (1,939), though the state does not have hospitalization data in 24 percent (2,709) of cases. DHS reports that 53 percent of individuals with confirmed cases have provided documentation of resolved symptoms or were diagnosed over 30 days ago.

The death toll from the virus has reached 434, with 13 newly-confirmed deaths in the past 24 hours.

Milwaukee County is the site of 4,387 of the 11,275 confirmed cases and 242 of the 434 deaths according to state data.

For the second day in a row, Milwaukee County recorded a greater per-capita growth rate than the state-leading Brown County.

Brown County, which is anchored by Green Bay, now has 769.5 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 762.9 yesterday). Milwaukee County has 459.8 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 441.7. On April 16th, Brown County had only 53.5 cases per 100,000 residents while Milwaukee had 204. Brown County now has 21 confirmed deaths and 1,999 confirmed cases.

Kenosha County has the third-highest rate at 452.7 cases per 100,000 residents. Racine (426.3), Walworth (243.7), Rock (242.9), Kewaunee (142.4), Grant (135.1), Ozaukee (128), Sauk (116.4), Fond du Lac (116.3), Waukesha (111.3), Crawford (110.5) and Green (105.8) are the only other counties with more than 100 cases per 100,000 residents.

The statewide average of cases per 100,000 residents has risen to 195.1 (up from 188.7).

There are currently 920 ventilators and 375 intensive care unit (ICU) beds available across the state according to the Wisconsin Hospital Association. Since the data became publicly available on April 10th, WHA has reported an average of 926 ventilators and 430 ICU beds as available.

Charts and Maps

Wisconsin COVID-19 summary

Status	Number (%) of People as of 5/14/2020
Negative Test Results	122,598
Positive Test Results	11,275
Hospitalizations	1,939 (17%)
Deaths	434

Percent of COVID-19 cases by hospitalization status

Hospitilization status	Number of confirmed cases as of 5/14/2020	Percent of confirmed cases as of 5/14/2020
Ever hospitalized	1,939	17%
Never hospitalized	6,627	59%
Unknown	2,709	24%
Total	11,275	100%

Summary of COVID-19 cases by age group

Age Group (Years)	Cases as of 5/14/2020	Ever hospitalized as of 5/14/2020	Any Intensive Care as of 5/14/2020	Deaths as of 5/14/2020
<10	187	9	0	0
10-19	523	18	1	0
20-29	1844	84	15	4
30-39	1960	131	23	5
40-49	1931	223	56	11
50-59	1901	334	91	36
60-69	1420	435	134	68
70-79	780	377	96	125
80-89	495	244	46	103
90+	234	84	16	82
Total	11,275	1,939	478	434

Percent of COVID-19 cases and deaths by gender

Gender	Confirmed Cases as of 5/14/2020	Deaths as of 5/14/2020
Female	50%	43%
Male	49%	57%
Unknown	0%	0%
Total Number	11,275	434

Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by race

Race	Number of cases as of 5/14/2020	Percent of cases as of 5/14/2020	Number of deaths as of 5/14/2020	Percent of deaths as of 5/14/2020
American Indian	128	1%	5	1%
Asian or Pacific Islander	420	4%	9	2%
Black	2,316	21%	123	28%
White	6,076	54%	289	67%
Multiple or Other races	1,168	10%	2	0%
Unknown	1,167	10%	6	1%
Total	11,275	100%	434	100%

Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by ethnicity

Ethnicity	Number of cases as of 5/14/2020	Percent of cases as of 5/14/2020	Number of deaths as of 5/14/2020	Percent of deaths as of 5/14/2020
Hispanic or Latino	3,489	31%	31	7%
Not Hispanic or Latino	6,620	59%	394	91%
Unknown	1,166	10%	9	2%
Total	11,275	100%	434	100%