This week’s coronavirus trendline (9.25.20 edition)

New coronavirus case numbers climbed in Idaho for the second successive week.

As of Friday afternoon, the state and its seven health districts reported 40,037 confirmed or probable coronavirus cases, a 7 percent increase from the previous week.

New case numbers increased in nearly every corner of the state, but the spike was the highest in Idaho County. Case numbers increased by a whopping 125 percent, largely fueled by an outbreak at the North Idaho Correctional Institution.

However, local hotspots popped up across the state, especially in Eastern Idaho. Cases increased by 47 percent in Madison County. Hotspots include Franklin County (a 41 percent increase), Latah County (a 32 percent increase), Fremont County (a 21 percent increase), Caribou County (a 20 percent increase), Jefferson County (an 18 percent increase), Bannock County (a 16 percent increase) and Bingham County (a 16 percent increase).

Not all the numbers trended upward. Coronavirus deaths and new hospitalizations dropped this week. However, death rates tend to increase a couple of weeks after an increase in new cases.

In other coronavirus headlines from the week:

A COVID-19 school fatality. A Middleton School District employee died of COVID-19, Superintendent Kristin Beck told trustees Wednesday. “The employee contracted COVID-19 prior to the beginning of in-person learning within the school district and was not present in the school facilities while students were also on campus,” Southwest District Health Director Nikki Zogg said Thursday.

School closings. Spikes in coronavirus cases prompted closures at North Star Charter School in Eagle and the Emmett and Glenns Ferry school districts. (Check our statewide map for school status in your area.)

School case data on the way? The state has been releasing data on coronavirus cases in long-term care facilities for months, and the state’s colleges and universities are posting campus case numbers. But school districts and charters have been deciding whether to post data — and the results are inconsistent. A statewide school database could be available in the near future, a Department of Health and Welfare administrator said this week.

This week’s numbers (and comparisons with last week):

Statewide data Sept. 18 Sept. 25 Change, Sept. 12-18 Change, Sept. 19-25
Cases, confirmed and probable 37,279 40,037 2,004 2,758
Deaths 438 458 26 20
Hospitalizations 1,701 1,795 132 94
ICU admissions 441 451 29 10
Estimated, patients recovered 19,915 21,291 1,863 1,366
Tests completed 285,137 298,652 12,249 13,515
Health care workers infected 2,542 2,688 194 146
Positive test rate (based on all cases divided by testing numbers, as reported by the state) 13.1 percent 13.4 percent +0.2 percentage points +0.3 percentage points

 

Cases in select counties Sept. 18 Sept. 25 New cases, Sept. 12-18 New cases, Sept. 19-25
Ada 12,261 12,693 388 432
Canyon 7,853 8,087 201 234
Bonneville 2,377 2,638 249 261
Kootenai 2,456 2,634 121 178
Twin Falls 1,997 2,196 135 199
Bannock 935 1,084 85 149
Bingham 834 971 133 137
Payette 802 864 44 62
Jerome 715 753 38 38
Cassia 626 705 32 79
Minidoka 614 675 30 61
Madison 446 654 115 208
Blaine 624 648 15 24
Jefferson 467 549 66 82
Nez Perce 389 435 17 46
Latah 310 410 36 100
Washington 329 357 11 28
Elmore 317 344 10 27
Owyhee 323 326 6 3
Bonner 286 320 31 34
Gem 269 307 14 38
Gooding 263 280 16 17
Power 223 251 41 28
Idaho 88 198 34 110
Fremont 155 188 20 33
   
Teton 146 162 2 16
Benewah 136 141 12 5
Franklin 95 134 19 39
Caribou 95 114 34 19
   

 

 

 

 

Kevin Richert

Kevin Richert

Senior reporter and blogger Kevin Richert specializes in education politics and education policy. He has more than 30 years of experience in Idaho journalism. He is a frequent guest on "Idaho Reports" on Idaho Public Television and "Idaho Matters" on Boise State Public Radio. Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KevinRichert. He can be reached at [email protected]

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