TRAINING BY THE END OF JANUARY.
COVID-19 CASES PERSIST IN
WISCONSIN.
A NEW SEVEN-DAY AVERAGE OF
17,586 POSITIVE INFECTIONS WERE
REPORTED AND THE STATE
EPIDEMIOLOGIST SAYS WE HAVE NOT
HIT THE PEAK OF THE SURGE.
WILL CUSHMAN, AUTHOR OF OUR
ONLINE "COVID-19 CONDITIONS"
SERIES JOINS US NOW WITH MORE.
THANKS FOR BEING HERE.
>> HEY, FRED.
>> LAST WEEK WE LEARNED THAT A
DATA DUMP OF POSITIVE CASES
CONTRIBUTED TO THESE HUGE
NUMBERS AND EVEN LATER THIS WEEK
A DAILY COUNT WAS MORE THAN
15,000.
ARE WE KIND OF JUST IN THE REAL
NUMBER NOW OR WHAT'S GOING ON
WITH ALL THAT?
>> YEAH.
GREAT QUESTION.
AND WE ARE BACK TO KIND OF NEW
DAILY CASE NUMBERS THAT DO
REFLECT THE DAILY REALITY.
THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
SERVICES DID, AS YOU SAY, KIND
OF DUMP SOME DATA AT THE END OF
LAST WEEK AND EARLY THIS WEEK
THAT RESULTED IN SOME REALLY
HIGH DAILY CASE COUNTS,
INCLUDING ON MONDAY.
THERE WERE OVER 35,000 NEW CASES
REPORTED ON JUST THAT DAY.
BUT THAT WAS A RESULT OF DHS
UPDATING ITS SYSTEM, AUTOMATING
PART OF ITS SYSTEM DUE TO
ACTUALLY A BACKLOG OF CASES THAT
HAD BEEN IN THE SYSTEM KIND OF
PILING UP FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS
JUST BECAUSE OF THE CRUSH OF THE
OMICRON SURGE.
BUT THAT WAS CLEARED EARLY THIS
WEEK, SO THE CASE NUMBERS ARE
KIND OF BACK TO REFLECTING DAILY
REALITY.
>> ALL RIGHT.
SO A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE ASKING
HAS WISCONSIN YET HIT THIS PEAK.
AND THE STATE HEALTH OFFICIALS
ARE SAYING WE HAVEN'T.
WHAT ELSE ARE THEY SAYING ABOUT
THAT?
>> YEAH.
THEY'RE SAYING THAT THE EVIDENCE
IS NOT THERE YET THAT WE HAVE
HIT OR ARE IMMINENTLY GOING TO
HIT THE OMICRON PEAK.
THEY NOTED THAT SOME PLACES
AROUND THE U.S. PROBABLY ARE A
LITTLE BIT BEYOND THE PEAK.
THOSE WOULD BE THE PLACES THAT
GOT HIT FIRST BY OMICRON, PLACES
LIKE NEW YORK CITY.
THEY SAID IN A BRIEFING
YESTERDAY, ON THURSDAY, THAT,
YEAH, WE'RE NOT QUITE THERE YET.
THE EVIDENCE ISN'T QUITE THERE
YET.
THEY ALSO REMINDED US THAT ONCE
WE DO HIT THAT PEAK, THERE WILL
BE JUST AS MANY INFECTIONS ON
THE DOWNSIDE OF THAT PEAK AS
THERE WERE LEADING UP TO IT, SO
WE WILL NOT BE OUT OF THE WOODS.
>> THE STATE IS PUTTING ON THE
PUSH TO PROTECT CHILDREN TO BOTH
KEEP THEM FROM GETTING SICK AND
KEEP THEM IN SCHOOL.
WHAT DO PEDIATRIC CASE COUNTS
AND HOSPITALIZATIONS LOOK LIKE?
>> CHILDREN HAVE ACCOUNTED FOR A
LARGE PART OF THE CASES DURING
THE OMICRON SURGE.
CASES HAVE ACTUALLY RISEN MOST
SHARPLY AMONG CHILDREN OF ALL
AGE GROUPS.
THERE HAVE BEEN ABOUT 50,000 NEW
CASES AMONG CHILDREN 18 AND
YOUNGER SINCE THE BEGINNING OF
THE YEAR.
SO THAT'S JUST A FEW WEEKS.
THAT'S REALLY A VERY HIGH NUMBER
OF CASES.
VERY FEW OF THOSE ACTUALLY
RESULT IN SYMPTOMS THAT ARE SO
SEVERE THAT CHILDREN ARE BEING
HOSPITALIZED AT HIGH RATES, BUT
THERE ARE CHILDREN BEING
HOSPITALIZED ALL AROUND THE
STATE, INCLUDING JUST THIS LAST
WEEK IN MILWAUKEE COUNTY ALONE
75 CHILDREN WERE HOSPITALIZED
WITH COVID.
>> AND YET AS WE'RE SUGGESTING,
IT'S STILL TRUE, IS IT NOT, THAT
THOSE CASES ARE NOT NECESSARILY
AS SEVERE?
>> YES.
THAT IS TRUE.
AND I SHOULD ALSO ADD THAT IT'S
NOT TOTALLY CLEAR ALL THE TIME
WHETHER CHILDREN OR ANYONE FOR
THAT MATTER BASED ON THE DATA
THAT WE HAVE ARE HOSPITALIZED
BECAUSE OF THE SYMPTOMS THEY ARE
EXPERIENCING DUE TO COVID OR IF
THEY'RE HOSPITALIZED PERHAPS FOR
ANOTHER REASON AND ALSO OUR
TESTING POSITIVE FOR COVID WHILE
THEY'RE IN THE HOSPITAL ALTHOUGH
THERE ARE DEFINITELY A LOT OF
PEOPLE IN THE HOSPITAL RIGHT NOW
SPECIFICALLY FOR COVID.
<!32768> YEAH.
VERY SCARY.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR
REPORTING ON THIS, WILL CUSHMAN.
>> YOU'RE WELCOME, FRED.
>> FOR MORE COVERAGE ON THE
COVID CONDITION IN WISCONSIN AND
WILLWILL'S REPORTING, VISIT