LINCOLN - Gov. Pete Ricketts said Nebraskans should be allowed to “return to normal” as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to fall in the state.

“Our case counts and hospitalization rates are dropping with each passing day," Ricketts said in a statement Thursday, February 17. "It’s a promising sign that we are moving to the endemic stage of COVID. It’s important that we pursue policies that let Nebraskans return to normal while continuing to live with the virus.”

Ricketts' comments followed the elimination of a temporary mask mandate in Omaha that was put in place last month in the midst of increased COVID-19 cases.

The seven-day rolling average of daily cases in Nebraska continued to fall sharply over the last two weeks. As of February 15, the number was 364.43. From mid-January until January 26, that figure was consistently above 4,000.

In addition, the number of statewide hospitalizations due to coronavirus fell this week to numbers not seen since early November.

Peak hospitalization numbers came on January 28 with 767. As of Tuesday, February 15 that number was 436.

While hospital officials are pleased with the falling number of cases, they remain extremely busy with non-COVID patients due to ongoing staff shortages.

Surgeries that were not deemed "necessary" were backlogged during the early and peak stages of the pandemic. Understaffed hospitals are now beginning to pick these back up as well.

For the full article click HERE