MADISON, Wis. — More than half of Wisconsinites aged 65 and up are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Nearly 75% of folks 65 and up have received at least one dose.
According to updated vaccination numbers released Wednesday by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, a total of 893,146 Wisconsinites are now fully vaccinated. That’s 15.3% of the state’s population. More than one in four Wisconsinites have received at least one dose of vaccine.
In total, health care workers throughout the state have administered 2,442,810 doses of vaccine. As of Tuesday, Wisconsin has received 2,679,245 doses of vaccine.
On Monday, an estimated 2 million Wisconsinites became eligible for vaccination. Some local health care providers, including UW Health, SSM Health and Meriter, have since updated their guidance for patients looking to schedule vaccination appointments.
The new vaccine data comes as health officials confirmed an additional 776 cases of COVID-19.
The seven-day percent average percent positive by test sat at 2.5% on Wednesday, continuing an apparent downward trend.
Since the start of the pandemic, health officials have confirmed a total of 573,899 cases of COVID-19. DHS data shows that roughly 1% of those cases, fewer than 6,400 in total, are active statewide.
An additional 10 deaths were reported Wednesday, bringing the state’s lifetime COVID-19 death toll to at least 6,597 people. Seventy-two people have been hospitalized in the past day.
While COVID-19 hospitalizations statewide are generally down from their peak, they’ve reached record lows in Dane County. Public Health Madison & Dane County officials on Wednesday said only 12 people were hospitalized with COVID-19. Only three of those patients were in intensive care.
Wisconsin GOP leaders on Wednesday offered a bit of rare praise for DHS’ vaccination efforts. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said the state’s vaccination rate and decrease in cases is encouraging.
“I’m just encouraged by the trend we’re on,” he said. “I think sooner rather than later we need to return to whatever that new normal is.”
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