COVID CASES IN NEBRASKA UP FOR THE 11TH WEEK, BUT NOT AS MUCH AS LAST WEEK

NEBRASKA- COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths continued to climb in Nebraska last week as the state’s summer surge pushes toward fall.

The state recorded 5,649 new cases for the week ending Thursday, up from 4,916 the previous week and 3,464 the week before that. It was the 11th straight week of rising cases in Nebraska.

Nebraska’s two-week case growth rate of 63% was down somewhat from last week’s but still ranked eighth highest in the nation.

That recent growth in cases now is translating into additional deaths. The 48 deaths recorded in the past two weeks are the most recorded in five months.

Hospitalizations, too, continue to rise. The state’s seven-day average of 337 as of Thursday was up from 309 the previous week.

Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts last week announced that the state is bringing back a statewide transfer center to help overstretched Nebraska hospitals find places to send patients.

The move is aimed at helping hospitals cope with a new wave of COVID patients, driven by the spread of the delta variant. The center will help relieve some of the stress on hospital staff by taking over the job of making call after call for an available bed. Hospitals now are dealing with an increase in the number of patients with ailments other than COVID-19 in addition to the influx of COVID patients.

For the full article click HERE