41 of 72 Counties Have Critically High COVID-19 Spread
Number of new cases and hospitalizations is slowing, but deaths continue to be reported at record levels.
There are some reasons for optimism when looking at Wisconsin’s COVID-19 statistics, but an abundance of reasons to be pessimistic that the situation on the ground is improving.
The number of new cases is falling, but so is the amount of people being newly tested. The latter isn’t necessarily a negative, but the percentage of tests that return a positive result remains near record levels.
The state’s lagging indicators also present a mixed message. The number of people actively hospitalized is falling as is the number of people newly hospitalized, both an unquestionably good thing for the state’s strained hospital system. But the daily death average continues to set record highs.
It will take two almost two weeks to understand if any surge results from the Thanksgiving holiday.
The Department of Health Services reported 3,777 new cases on Wednesday from 9,983 processed tests.
The seven-day case total stands at 25,648, below last Thursday’s record 45,946. September, when Wisconsin’s surge started, accounted for 46,671 cases in its entirety. The seven-day testing total stands at 71,715, below November 18th’s record rolling total of 133,019 tests. The testing total is filtered to only include individuals who were tested for the first time or have been tested previously but are receiving their first positive diagnosis.
Officials have looked for the positive case rate to trend downward to indicate a slowing spread of disease and sufficient testing. Multiple public health benchmarks call for the positive case rate figure to be sustained under five percent.
DHS reported 197 people were newly hospitalized in the past 24 hours in its daily data release. A total of 17,569 people have required hospitalization since the outbreak began, 1,112 in the past week.
The Wisconsin Hospital Association reported that 1,780 people were actively hospitalized with a confirmed case of the disease, a decrease of 47 from the day before and 112 from a week ago. Thirty days ago the total was 1,648.
The 30-day average daily death total now stands at a record average of 48.4 Thirty days ago the rolling average was 22.6.
Since September, Milwaukee County has gone from having the worst per-capita outbreak to the 21st worst in the state, even as its case and hospitalization load has surged to record levels. The county fell as low as 26th in early November.
Menominee County has recorded 13,007.8 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 12,848). Dodge County has recorded 9,480.4 cases per 100,000 residents (up from 9,425.5). Shawano, Brown, Oconto, Kewaunee, Jackson, Fond du Lac, Trempealeau, Forest, Calumet, Sheboygan, Langlade, Winnebago, Barron, Eau Claire, Outagamie, Chippewa, Crawford and Florence counties are the remaining counties leading Milwaukee.
According to DHS data, 7,388.8 out of every 100,000 Milwaukee County residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since the outbreak began (up from 7,310.2).
The statewide average of cases per 100,000 residents rose to 6,834.2 (up from 6,768.9). Wisconsin has recorded a per-capita rate of 1,094.1 cases per 100,000 residents in the past two weeks according to the DHS activity level report released Wednesday. That’s down from the record 1,519.4 reported November 18th.
Charts and Maps
Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by gender
Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by race
Confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths by ethnicity
Cases and deaths by county
Number of confirmed cases | Number of negatives* | Number of probable cases | Number of deaths † | Number of probable deaths ‡ | Cases per 100,000 people (counties) | Deaths per 100,000 people (counties) | Case fatality percentage †† | |
Adams | 1,071 | 6,133 | 73 | 7 | 1 | 5,225.7 | 34.2 | 0.7% |
Ashland | 697 | 5,330 | 28 | 9 | 0 | 4,393.9 | 56.7 | 1.3% |
Barron | 3,688 | 15,466 | 70 | 41 | 0 | 8,038.4 | 89.4 | 1.1% |
Bayfield | 698 | 5,265 | 18 | 14 | 0 | 4,590.9 | 92.1 | 2.0% |
Brown | 22,857 | 106,541 | 867 | 139 | 10 | 8,780.0 | 53.4 | 0.6% |
Buffalo | 828 | 3,987 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 6,129.2 | 29.6 | 0.5% |
Burnett | 790 | 4,824 | 82 | 13 | 0 | 5,114.3 | 84.2 | 1.6% |
Calumet | 4,086 | 16,254 | 226 | 26 | 1 | 7,937.7 | 50.5 | 0.6% |
Chippewa | 4,921 | 23,146 | 58 | 53 | 2 | 7,662.7 | 82.5 | 1.1% |
Clark | 2,215 | 8,507 | 192 | 42 | 3 | 6,375.8 | 120.9 | 1.9% |
Columbia | 3,531 | 22,714 | 202 | 12 | 1 | 6,180.9 | 21.0 | 0.3% |
Crawford | 1,318 | 6,211 | 28 | 8 | 0 | 7,961.3 | 48.3 | 0.6% |
Dane | 27,830 | 276,346 | 788 | 102 | 3 | 5,265.9 | 19.3 | 0.4% |
Dodge | 8,457 | 33,452 | 423 | 74 | 4 | 9,480.4 | 83.0 | 0.9% |
Door | 1,612 | 11,274 | 121 | 11 | 0 | 5,746.7 | 39.2 | 0.7% |
Douglas | 2,138 | 13,804 | 129 | 6 | 0 | 4,873.0 | 13.7 | 0.3% |
Dunn | 2,863 | 14,599 | 123 | 13 | 0 | 6,393.9 | 29.0 | 0.5% |
Eau Claire | 7,909 | 38,383 | 143 | 59 | 8 | 7,686.6 | 57.3 | 0.7% |
Florence | 333 | 1,334 | 19 | 12 | 0 | 7,532.2 | 271.4 | 3.6% |
Fond du Lac | 8,569 | 35,343 | 469 | 50 | 6 | 8,289.4 | 48.4 | 0.6% |
Forest | 733 | 3,346 | 45 | 18 | 2 | 7,983.0 | 196.0 | 2.5% |
Grant | 3,528 | 19,389 | 281 | 64 | 2 | 6,736.2 | 122.2 | 1.8% |
Green | 1,739 | 12,578 | 29 | 5 | 1 | 4,717.3 | 13.6 | 0.3% |
Green Lake | 1,192 | 6,151 | 255 | 6 | 2 | 6,244.8 | 31.4 | 0.5% |
Iowa | 1,315 | 8,908 | 46 | 5 | 1 | 5,525.4 | 21.0 | 0.4% |
Iron | 363 | 2,082 | 65 | 10 | 4 | 6,211.5 | 171.1 | 2.8% |
Jackson | 1,755 | 8,860 | 20 | 5 | 0 | 8,501.3 | 24.2 | 0.3% |
Jefferson | 5,426 | 29,292 | 394 | 39 | 1 | 6,408.0 | 46.1 | 0.7% |
Juneau | 1,937 | 12,507 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 7,198.6 | 26.0 | 0.4% |
Kenosha | 9,710 | 58,927 | 1,089 | 153 | 5 | 5,771.8 | 90.9 | 1.6% |
Kewaunee | 1,713 | 5,904 | 58 | 17 | 0 | 8,297.8 | 82.3 | 1.0% |
La Crosse | 8,209 | 40,943 | 302 | 37 | 0 | 6,937.2 | 31.3 | 0.5% |
Lafayette | 1,095 | 5,238 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 6,485.8 | 23.7 | 0.4% |
Langlade | 1,558 | 5,659 | 91 | 29 | 7 | 7,877.8 | 146.6 | 1.9% |
Lincoln | 1,986 | 8,406 | 98 | 30 | 13 | 6,982.6 | 105.5 | 1.5% |
Manitowoc | 4,980 | 23,382 | 689 | 37 | 4 | 6,205.3 | 46.1 | 0.7% |
Marathon | 9,926 | 40,040 | 815 | 126 | 17 | 7,366.7 | 93.5 | 1.3% |
Marinette | 3,012 | 14,267 | 253 | 29 | 0 | 7,357.5 | 70.8 | 1.0% |
Marquette | 1,032 | 4,872 | 132 | 15 | 0 | 6,710.9 | 97.5 | 1.5% |
Menominee | 570 | 3,571 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 13,007.8 | 182.6 | 1.4% |
Milwaukee | 69,786 | 376,779 | 5,014 | 756 | 13 | 7,388.8 | 80.0 | 1.1% |
Monroe | 2,683 | 15,037 | 30 | 14 | 0 | 5,832.9 | 30.4 | 0.5% |
Oconto | 3,177 | 13,530 | 212 | 28 | 3 | 8,368.9 | 73.8 | 0.9% |
Oneida | 2,346 | 13,179 | 60 | 34 | 1 | 6,532.5 | 94.7 | 1.4% |
Outagamie | 13,854 | 64,862 | 889 | 133 | 0 | 7,537.5 | 72.4 | 1.0% |
Ozaukee | 4,891 | 30,950 | 618 | 36 | 4 | 5,535.3 | 40.7 | 0.7% |
Pepin | 497 | 2,399 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 6,762.8 | 27.2 | 0.4% |
Pierce | 2,204 | 12,970 | 400 | 19 | 4 | 5,293.6 | 45.6 | 0.9% |
Polk | 2,236 | 14,887 | 19 | 15 | 0 | 5,093.4 | 34.2 | 0.7% |
Portage | 4,770 | 21,351 | 219 | 37 | 2 | 6,745.0 | 52.3 | 0.8% |
Price | 751 | 4,393 | 40 | 4 | 0 | 5,438.9 | 29.0 | 0.5% |
Racine | 14,288 | 88,487 | 1,409 | 177 | 6 | 7,319.6 | 90.7 | 1.2% |
Richland | 891 | 7,739 | 20 | 13 | 0 | 5,030.5 | 73.4 | 1.5% |
Rock | 9,553 | 58,533 | 446 | 90 | 3 | 5,960.8 | 56.2 | 0.9% |
Rusk | 904 | 3,880 | 26 | 7 | 0 | 6,219.9 | 48.2 | 0.8% |
Sauk | 3,637 | 29,762 | 120 | 19 | 0 | 5,801.9 | 30.3 | 0.5% |
Sawyer | 921 | 6,550 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 5,558.6 | 42.2 | 0.8% |
Shawano | 3,723 | 13,818 | 180 | 50 | 4 | 9,023.3 | 121.2 | 1.3% |
Sheboygan | 9,254 | 36,400 | 319 | 62 | 2 | 8,081.0 | 54.1 | 0.7% |
St. Croix | 4,417 | 27,491 | 268 | 21 | 0 | 5,009.7 | 23.8 | 0.5% |
Taylor | 1,222 | 4,614 | 126 | 10 | 4 | 5,937.8 | 48.6 | 0.8% |
Trempealeau | 2,451 | 9,732 | 41 | 22 | 0 | 8,356.1 | 75.0 | 0.9% |
Vernon | 1,171 | 10,541 | 7 | 12 | 0 | 3,866.3 | 39.6 | 1.0% |
Vilas | 1,287 | 6,890 | 36 | 13 | 0 | 5,942.9 | 60.0 | 1.0% |
Walworth | 6,127 | 33,622 | 1,052 | 53 | 2 | 5,970.9 | 51.6 | 0.9% |
Washburn | 726 | 4,875 | 50 | 5 | 0 | 4,579.6 | 31.5 | 0.7% |
Washington | 9,059 | 41,129 | 1,097 | 72 | 5 | 6,736.0 | 53.5 | 0.8% |
Waukesha | 26,945 | 131,548 | 2,174 | 210 | 11 | 6,759.2 | 52.7 | 0.8% |
Waupaca | 3,715 | 16,033 | 511 | 86 | 30 | 7,181.4 | 166.2 | 2.3% |
Waushara | 1,758 | 9,141 | 79 | 10 | 0 | 7,235.2 | 41.2 | 0.6% |
Winnebago | 13,285 | 64,460 | 1,319 | 117 | 4 | 7,845.0 | 69.1 | 0.9% |
Wood | 4,371 | 23,799 | 251 | 29 | 5 | 5,904.7 | 39.2 | 0.7% |
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