OMAHA - Since a peak in early May, new daily case counts have decreased in many former hot spots and in the state as a whole. However, cases have remained higher than desired in Douglas County. In addition, the state remained among the top 10 nationally in terms of daily case counts per capita. Nebraska’s seven-day average of 139.6 cases per million people on Thursday ranked higher than former hot spot New York with 61.7 cases per million, according to a tally maintained by a University of Illinois professor.

Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts said in a Friday interview that the good news is the state is in a much better position to monitor and manage the coronavirus than it was three or even two months ago. Ricketts described the testing, tracing and social distancing measures as “a lot of blocking and tackling on a daily basis.” Ricketts said his administration’s North Star continues to be maintaining adequate hospital capacity so that any Nebraskan who needs a hospital or ICU bed can get it.

Ricketts said his administration has sought to support hospital capacity by raising six pillars — testing; contact tracing; isolation and quarantine lodging; supplies of protective gear; assistance for at-risk populations such as those in long-term care, food processing facilities and homeless shelters; and the health measures aimed at slowing the spread.

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