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| Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Wisconsin surpassed 400,000 total COVID-19 cases on Friday, registering the most recent 100,000 in just 21 days.
New cases reported: 4,847
New deaths reported: 63
Number of hospitalized: 1,660 (intensive care: 371); down from 87 patients a month ago
Seven-day average of daily cases: 4,102 (down 737 cases from a month ago)
Seven-day average of daily deaths: 53 (up to 16 compared to a month ago)
The average positivity rate – first positive tests in the past seven days – was 32.7% on Friday.
Total number of cases since the start of the pandemic: 404,555 (63,202 active cases)
Total number of deaths: 3,625
Key points to remember
It took Wisconsin more than seven months to register its first 100,000 cases, then just 36 days to cash the second 100,000 and 18 days to reach the third.
The fourth batch of 100,000 cases, gained in 21 days, comes as Wisconsin’s seven-day case average declines from a peak in mid-November. The current numbers are comparable to the new daily case totals seen a month ago, when cases started to climb rapidly.
The total number of hospitalizations has also declined from a peak of nearly 2,300 in mid-November, but they are still well above levels seen before the start of the fall spike in cases.
Deaths from the virus remain high, however. Friday’s seven-day average of 53 COVID-19 deaths is just below the pandemic’s highest seven-day death average of 55 set for late November.
Follow COVID-19 in Wisconsin: See the latest figures and trends
How to interpret COVID-19 data: What experts say about positive cases, deaths and hospitalizations
Wisconsin shortens recommended quarantine period
Following new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services has shortened its recommended quarantine period for close contact with someone infected with COVID-19.
Health experts had previously recommended a 14-day quarantine for people exposed to an infected person. But in light of additional research and in an effort to achieve broader compliance, the CDC recommended on Wednesday that some people be able to self-isolate for seven or 10 days.
According to new state guidelines, people who do not develop symptoms can end their quarantine:
- After completing 10 days of quarantine without testing
- After completing seven days of quarantine and receiving a negative test result (molecular or antigen) that was collected within 48 hours of the end of quarantine.
People should continue to watch for symptoms for the full 14 days, the state said.
“If symptoms develop after quarantine ends, people are advised to self-isolate immediately, contact their health care provider, and get tested,” read a press release.
“For many, there may be barriers that make quarantine for 14 days extremely difficult,” Andrea Palm, DHS secretary-designate, said in a statement. “While a shorter quarantine carries an additional risk of the spread of COVID-19, when done responsibly, it can make quarantine easier for more Wisconsinites.”
The updated guidelines “will make quarantine more feasible,” DHS chief medical officer Ryan Westergaard said in a conference call with reporters Thursday.
A shorter quarantine period is “much less disruptive” for employers, he said, and people might be more willing to comply.
When contact tracers interview infected people, some don’t want to reveal their recent whereabouts and close contacts because “it’s so intimidating to think of having to quarantine for 14 days,” Westergaard said.
The CDC defines close contact as a period of 15 minutes total 6 feet or closer to an infected person.
More: Wisconsin flags to half staff to honor EMT nurse who died of complications from COVID-19
More: Meet just a fraction of the people Wisconsin has lost to COVID in a single week
We want to remember the lives of those who died from COVID-19. Email us at [email protected] with the subject line “COVID-19 remembrance” or fill out this form if you would like to share a loved one’s story with Sentinel Journal.
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