WAUSAU, Wis. – Recent COVID-19 data from the state of Wisconsin and Aspirus Health continue to show an encouraging trend.

COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state are on a steady decline since mid-January 2021. There are 80 COVID-positive patients in Aspirus hospitals today – the fewest since September 23, 2021.

This also is a considerable decrease from January when Aspirus’ average COVID daily census was 125.

The number of COVID-19 ICU patients is also dropping. Today, Aspirus has 20 COVID-positive patients in the ICU and 10 on ventilators compared to a daily average in January of 29 and 22, respectively.

"With these trends of decreased cases and hospitalizations, we are getting a little bit of a reprieve from this two-year-long pandemic,” said Jenny Redman-Schell, Aspirus Senior Vice President and President of the Aspirus Medical Group.

The Aspirus Reference Lab saw a 24 percent positivity rate in COVID-19 tests processed from January 31 – February 5, 2022.

That rate is lower than Aspirus experienced during the peak of the delta variant surge in November 2021, when positivity rate reached 28 percent.

These numbers align with COVID-19 positivity rates being reported by the Wisconsin of Department of Health Services. The state has seen a steady decrease in the percentage of total positive tests since early in January 2022.

These positive trends are allowing Aspirus to resume procedures that had been postponed during the busiest weeks of the surge, when resources were redirected to the crucial efforts to care for COVID-19 patients.

“This is very important because we want to make sure that patients get the care that they need,” Redman-Schell said. “Even if you need a total hip or total knee replacement it’s very important because you could be living with pain or decreased mobility and you want to get that case completed and start on the road to rehab.”

Aspirus continues to monitor COVID-19 activity. Community cases have returned to where they were before the emergence of the omicron variant, but it is still important for the community to follow public health guidance and get vaccinated and boosted.

COVID-19 vaccinations are available through Aspirus Health and numerous pharmacies in our communities. Boosters or initial vaccination series can be scheduled through Aspirus using the MyAspirus online patient portal or mobile app. Appointments are also available by calling the Aspirus COVID-19 Call Center at 844-568-0701 or 715-843-1454. The Call Center has been experiencing high call volumes, so community members are encouraged to use MyAspirus for convenience.

About Aspirus Health

Aspirus Health is a non-profit, community-directed health system based in Wausau, Wisconsin. Its 11,000 employees are focused on improving the health and well-being of people throughout Wisconsin and Upper Michigan. Aspirus serves communities through four hospitals in Michigan and 13 hospitals in Wisconsin, 75 clinics, home health and hospice care, pharmacies, critical care and air-medical transport, medical goods, nursing homes and a broad network of physicians. Aspirus has been recognized four consecutive years by IBM Watson Health as a Top 15 Health System in its annual study identifying the top-performing health systems in the country. For more information, visit aspirus.org.