COVID-19 cases continue to rise in eastern Idaho; local health districts report total of six deaths in two days
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IDAHO FALLS — COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and the number of deaths caused by the virus continue to climb in eastern Idaho.
Since Monday, both Eastern Idaho Public Health and Southeastern Idaho Public Health have had three deaths in each health district — ranging in ages from the 40s to 80s.
EIPH reported 210 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday bringing the grand total of confirmed and probable cases to 8,114. There have been 35 deaths and 826 cases are still considered active, but 7,253 have recovered from the virus.
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A case is considered probable if a person has not been tested, or a test is pending, and the person has all the symptoms of COVID-19, has come into direct contact with an infected person, and developed symptoms within the expected timeframe.
SIPH also reported in the triple digits on Tuesday with 118 new cases of COVID-19. This number brings the total of cases in the health district to 4,550. Although that’s roughly half of what EIPH has had, SIPH has still reported 34 deaths. There are 918 active cases and 3,632 people have recovered.
Statewide, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare says there have been 54,663 total cases and 26,549 are estimated to have recovered but 535 Idaho residents have died from COVID-19.
COVID-19 has an extremely high recovery rate and the vast majority of people who catch the virus will recover at home with no problems. That being said, all the major hospitals in the region have expressed that they’re experiencing the highest number of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 that they’ve ever seen during the pandemic. In return, this is placing a strain on hospital resources.
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On Tuesday, Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center told EastIdahoNews.com the hospital had 39 COVID-19 hospitalizations, setting an all-time high.
Power County Hospital District mentioned Tuesday that it had two COVID-19 patients, but that it had seven total patients, which is the maximum capacity it can have.
Based on the information from eastern Idaho hospitals that are releasing COVID-19 data to EastIdahoNews.com, there were 58 COVID-19 hospitalizations and 12 COVID-19 patients in intensive care units as of Tuesday evening.
IDHW reminds Idahoans to help slow the spread of COVID-19:
- Keep at least six feet between you and others in public
- Wear face coverings in public places
- Stay home if you are sick
- Wash your hands often
- Cover coughs and sneezes
- Disinfect surfaces and objects regularly
For more COVID-19 news, including where to view hospital data, click here.