Some midwestern states are seeing a decline in new coronavirus cases after a dramatic drop in hospital discharges. But signs of improvement are being filled by the rapid spread of the infection on both shores.
States including Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Nebraska have seen a decline in the number of people testing positive for Cove 19 over the past few weeks. However, the first increase in all cases is still causing an alarming number of deaths and hospitalizations.
Doctors and public health officials say that with the winter season moving people indoors, where the virus spreads more easily, there is no guarantee of dynamic improvement.
“We’re getting a vaccine, but it doesn’t change the whole picture,” Omaha told the World Herald, referring to the Global Center for Health Security at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. “Things can still easily move south.”
But he and others are encouraged by the statistics. In Iowa, for example, the number of new virus cases reported daily has dropped from about 1,800 to 1,250 in the past two weeks. In Nebraska, it has dropped from about 1,800 to 1,300 in a single day.
The emergency room doctor at Unity Point Allen Hospital in Waterloo, Iowa, Dr. “I’m crossing my fingers at the moment,” said Stacey Marlowe. “The secret patients I see are very, very sick. But there are very few of them. ”
The death toll from the virus has risen sharply in Iowa, from 79 breasts a day to 28 breasts two weeks ago.
The hope, of course, is that the decline in infections will turn into a decline in deaths, but it may take time. Many who are now dying of covid-19 were infected weeks ago.
Across the country, the death toll is over 300,000, with more than 16 million confirmed infections. The United States is seeing about 2,400 deaths and more than 215,000 new cases every day. An impressive model from the University of Washington estimates that by April 1, deaths could be as high as 502,000, even with a single injection.
Lawler said more Nebraska residents appear to be following food restrictions and wearing masks in public. It helps that many Nebraska cities have recently passed the Mask Fatwa, he said.
But he said it was important for Nebraska to be vigilant about maintaining social distance as they waited for the vaccine to become widely available in the spring.
In a meeting with the governors this week, a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, Dr. Deborah Birks said progress in the Midwestern states was being hampered by deteriorating conditions on both sides.
Across the country, the number of people hospitalized with the virus has reached a record high of more than 110,000, according to the Covid Tracking Project.
In California, for example, the supply of beds in intensive care units is declining because new cases average more than 31,000 breasts a day.
“We’ve reached a number of cases that are higher than all previous records,” said Van Do Reynoso, Santa Barbara County’s director of public health. “Everyone must act now and stay home. We are approaching a situation where we can see that our health care system is being affected. ”
In New York City, authorities stopped home-cooked meals at restaurants Monday because of a steady rise in infections. State and city officials have warned that a massive shutdown could be necessary if things continue to go awry.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said: “We cannot allow this virus to continue to grow, especially at a time when we are finally being vaccinated and can turn a corner.
About 370 coronavirus patients were meticulously cared for in the city this week, a threefold increase from a month earlier. A fraction of the more than 3,100 patients who filled out. Across the state, the number of newly confirmed cases has increased from about 6,500 to over 10,100 in a single day in the last two weeks.
In New Jersey, the increase in the number of new breast cases from an average of 4,000 to 4,900 a day in late November has caused concern among authorities and healthcare providers. But dynamics are very different from last spring’s crisis.
“People are still dying from the disease, but certainly not in the numbers we’re seeing at the time,” said Dr. John Bonamo, chief medical and quality officer at RWJ Barnabas Health, a major hospital operator in the state.
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Mission, Associated Press writers in Kansas, Heather Hollingsworth and Carla K. in Washington State. Johnson contributed to this report.
