New reports of COVID-19 cases are back on the decline in Wisconsin, based on the latest data published by the state Department of Health Services.
DHS reported 626 new cases of the disease Wednesday, bringing the average for the past seven days to 671 daily cases. One week ago, the average was 823 daily cases.
Stay informed on the latest news
Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter.
There were 4,439 negative tests reported Wednesday.
As COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin continue to decline, more of the state’s residents are being vaccinated against the disease.
A total of 3,978,523 doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered in Wisconsin as of Wednesday, with 72.6 percent of Wisconsinites age 65 and up fully vaccinated.
As of Wednesday, 1,677,365 people in Wisconsin, or 28.8 percent of the population, have been fully vaccinated.
Increasing rates of vaccination have provided a sense of hope after a yearlong pandemic that has claimed the lives of 6,721 people in Wisconsin. There were three new deaths from COVID-19 reported Wednesday.
Other DHS data from Wednesday include:
- 592,262 total cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.
- 3,403,332 total tests administered, 2,811,070 of which have been negative since the pandemic began.
- 28,764 people have been hospitalized because of the disease, or 4.9 percent of all positive cases, since the pandemic began.
- Daily testing capacity remains at 59,273, though only 5,065 new test results were reported Wednesday.
Coronavirus rates vary from county to county. In order to track COVID-19 activity levels, DHS looks at the number of new cases per a county’s population over a 14-day period — and whether there’s an upward or downward trend in new cases. Activity levels range from “very high,” “high,” “medium,” to “low.”
As of Wednesday, DHS data showed the state had three counties — Burnett, Polk and St. Croix — with a “very high” level, while the majority of Wisconsin counties had “high” levels of activity. There were growing case trajectories in two counties. Wisconsin’s overall COVID-19 activity level is “high.”
For more about COVID-19, visit Coronavirus in Wisconsin.
___________________________
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2024, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.