Jeramey Jannene
Daily

State Sees Biggest Hike In New COVID-19 Hospital Admissions In 30 Days

Testing hits new single-day high, as does the number of new cases.

By - May 20th, 2020 02:44 pm
COVID-19. Credit: U.S. Army.

COVID-19. Credit: U.S. Army.

Wisconsin set a number of new COVID-19 highs Wednesday, some positive, some negative. The number of tests processed in a 24-hour period set a new record of 6,591 according to the Department of Health Services, besting the previous high of 6,469, a positive sign in the state’s efforts to slow the spread of the virus.

But the number of newly confirmed cases also hit a one-day high of 528, a result of increased testing, but more significantly, a reversal of a downward trend in the percentage of people testing positive. Wednesday’s 24-hour data release includes a positive rate of 8.01 percent, above the seven-day average of 6.32 percent and 14-day average of 6.35 percent. When the state last set a one-day testing record, only 410 people tested positive (6.34 percent).

A total of 51 people were newly hospitalized with the disease, a 30-day high and above the average of 34 since DHS began reporting the data daily on April 4th.

In Milwaukee County, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 has gone from 146 to 183 in the past week. “This is a concerning 29 percent increase in COVID-19 patients in our hospitals,” said Dr. Ben Weston, Milwaukee County medical services director, during a Wednesday afternoon press briefing.

Milwaukee County is the site of 5,373 of the 13,413 confirmed cases and 265 of the 481 deaths according to state data. That’s an increase of five deaths over yesterday as the statewide total went up by 14.

Across Wisconsin, 13,413 have now tested positive for the disease. DHS reports 58 percent have recovered, defined by a positive test over 30 days ago or a record of symptom abatement.

Both Brown and Racine counties continue to have greater per capita outbreaks than Milwaukee.

Brown County, which is anchored by Green Bay, has 821.8 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 815.3 yesterday). Racine County has 570.6 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 543). Milwaukee County has 563.1 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 532).

Kenosha (528.1), Walworth (287.3), Rock (279.4), Kewaunee (152.3) and Grant (150.5) are the only other counties with more than 150 cases per 100,000 residents.

The statewide average of cases per 100,000 residents has risen to 232.1 (up from 223).

Statewide 393 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, an increase of 50 over the past seven days. A total of 182 people are hospitalized with a COVID-19 test pending, an increase of 13. Across the state, 16 percent of people confirmed to have the disease have required hospitalization.

There are currently 981 ventilators and 393 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 929 ventilators and 425 ICU beds as available.

Charts and Maps

Wisconsin COVID-19 summary

Status Number (%) of People as of 5/20/2020
Negative Test Results 154,300
Positive Test Results 13,413
Hospitalizations 2,161 (16%)
Deaths 481

Percent of COVID-19 cases by hospitalization status

Hospitalization status Number of confirmed cases as of 5/20/2020 Percent of confirmed cases as of 5/20/2020
Ever hospitalized 2,161 16%
Never hospitalized 7,713 58%
Unknown 3,539 26%
Total 13,413 100%

Summary of COVID-19 cases by age group

Age Group (Years) Cases as of 5/20/2020 Ever hospitalized as of 5/20/2020 Any Intensive Care as of 5/20/2020 Deaths as of 5/20/2020
<10 257 10 0 0
10-19 695 22 2 0
20-29 2,250 96 17 4
30-39 2,366 154 24 5
40-49 2,288 252 61 13
50-59 2,176 369 94 44
60-69 1,617 475 142 81
70-79 903 414 103 133
80-89 578 275 53 115
90+ 283 94 19 86
Total 13,413 2,161 515 481

Percent of COVID-19 cases and deaths by gender

Gender Confirmed Cases as of 5/20/2020 Deaths as of 5/20/2020
Female 51% 42%
Male 49% 58%
Unknown 0% 0%
Total Number 13,413 481

Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by race

Race Number of cases as of 5/20/2020 Percent of cases as of 5/20/2020 Number of deaths as of 5/20/2020 Percent of deaths as of 5/20/2020
American Indian 151 1% 6 1%
Asian or Pacific Islander 504 4% 12 2%
Black 2,684 20% 136 28%
White 7,136 53% 316 66%
Multiple or Other races 1,497 11% 4 1%
Unknown 1,441 11% 7 1%
Total 13,413 100% 481 100%

Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by ethnicity

Ethnicity Number of cases as of 5/20/2020 Percent of cases as of 5/20/2020 Number of deaths as of 5/20/2020 Percent of deaths as of 5/20/2020
Hispanic or Latino 4,193 31% 42 9%
Not Hispanic or Latino 7,688 57% 431 90%
Unknown 1,532 11% 8 2%
Total 13,413 100% 481 100%

Number of positive cases and deaths by county

Wisconsin County Positive as of 5/20/2020 Negative as of 5/20/2020 Deaths as of 5/20/2020 Rate (positive cases per 100,000 people) as of 5/20/2020 Case fatality percentage (percent of cases who died) as of 5/20/2020
Adams 4 418 1 19.9 25%
Ashland 2 331 0 12.7 0%
Barron 11 1,391 0 24.3 0%
Bayfield 3 337 1 20.0 33%
Brown 2,135 9,806 29 821.8 1%
Buffalo 5 524 1 38.0 20%
Burnett 1 316 1 6.6 100%
Calumet 60 991 1 120.5 2%
Chippewa 43 1,876 0 67.6 0%
Clark 30 593 4 87.0 13%
Columbia 37 1,565 1 65.0 3%
Crawford 23 614 0 141.2 0%
Dane 563 19,259 26 106.3 5%
Dodge 112 2,135 1 127.6 1%
Door 34 616 3 123.9 9%
Douglas 15 951 0 34.6 0%
Dunn 20 1,588 0 44.9 0%
Eau Claire 78 3,631 0 75.7 0%
Florence 2 220 0 46.1 0%
Fond du Lac 148 3,053 3 144.7 2%
Forest 11 250 0 122.0 0%
Grant 78 1,752 10 150.5 13%
Green 49 918 0 132.9 0%
Green Lake 11 481 0 58.6 0%
Iowa 11 533 0 46.6 0%
Iron 2 81 1 35.0 50%
Jackson 15 723 1 73.1 7%
Jefferson 62 1,812 2 73.2 3%
Juneau 22 706 1 83.3 5%
Kenosha 889 4,782 21 528.1 2%
Kewaunee 31 429 1 152.3 3%
La Crosse 47 3,661 0 39.9 0%
Lafayette 17 364 0 101.6 0%
Langlade 0 314 0 0.0 0%
Lincoln 3 360 0 10.8 0%
Manitowoc 26 1,228 1 32.7 4%
Marathon 35 1,748 1 25.9 3%
Marinette 28 1,234 2 69.1 7%
Marquette 3 352 1 19.7 33%
Menominee 2 179 0 43.7 0%
Milwaukee 5,373 29,470 265 563.1 5%
Monroe 15 1,572 1 33.0 7%
Oconto 31 1,020 0 82.5 0%
Oneida 7 558 0 19.8 0%
Outagamie 153 4,072 5 82.8 3%
Ozaukee 130 1,477 11 147.3 8%
Pepin 1 310 0 13.8 0%
Pierce 26 917 0 62.5 0%
Polk 7 868 1 16.1 14%
Portage 7 1,146 0 9.9 0%
Price 1 204 0 7.4 0%
Racine 1,115 5,883 20 570.6 2%
Richland 14 482 3 79.8 21%
Rock 452 4,592 14 279.4 3%
Rusk 4 244 0 28.2 0%
Sauk 77 2,266 3 121.1 4%
Sawyer 4 568 0 24.4 0%
Shawano 34 941 0 82.9 0%
Sheboygan 73 1,969 3 63.4 4%
St. Croix 52 1,798 0 59.1 0%
Taylor 0 250 0 0.0 0%
Trempealeau 11 1,011 0 37.4 0%
Vernon 12 825 0 39.3 0%
Vilas 4 292 0 18.5 0%
Walworth 296 2,279 11 287.3 4%
Washburn 1 354 0 6.4 0%
Washington 163 2,492 4 121.2 2%
Waukesha 514 7,989 24 128.9 5%
Waupaca 19 991 1 36.9 5%
Waushara 7 562 0 29.0 0%
Winnebago 134 3,405 1 78.9 1%
Wood 8 1,371 0 10.9 0%
Total 13,413 154,300 481 232.1 4%

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