MADISON, WI (WTAQ) — There were 104 COVID-19 deaths reported by state officials on Tuesday–a new record.
It was a record that was reported just two days after zero deaths were reported on Sunday.
State data reveals that neither number is an accurate picture as to how many people, exactly, are dying per day as a result of the COVID-19 coronavirus.
To get that, we have to look deeper into the data, which is available on the Wisconsin DHS COVID-19 website. You can check it out for yourself here.
Using that data, it was actually November 2nd that saw the highest single-day number of COVID-19 deaths during the pandemic, with 60 deaths in one 24 hour period. The data also separates deaths between “confirmed” and “probable” COVID-19 patients.
Bureau of Infectious Diseases Dr. Ryan Westergaard says there’s a reason for the discrepancy.
“There are usually a couple of days of processing so that we can anchor it to the time the test happened or the death occurred,” Westergaard told WTAQ. “It’s usually between two or three days.”
So while 104 deaths were reported by the state Tuesday, it’s likely that they occurred sometime between Saturday and Tuesday.
“Whether it’s 104 spread over three days or the last 24 hours, it’s 104 deaths that were preventable,” said DHS Secretary Designee Andrea Palm. “It reminds us that we need to do everything we can to stop the spread of this disease.”
The number of daily deaths has actually been trending down since that November 2nd high.
