On July 19, Governor Jared Polis addressed national airwaves, explaining his decision to issue a state-wide mask order to help stop the spread of COVID-19 on NBC. Meet the press and ABC This week – and its urgency was reinforced by new statistics from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, which has just reported higher case and hospitalization data than at any other time since May.
These are the cumulative CDPHE numbers, updated after 4 pm on July 19:
40,142 cases
439,068 people evaluated
63 counties
1,752 deaths between cases
1,615 deaths from COVID-19
427 outbreaks
Note that only one Colorado county, Kiowa, has yet to report a case of the new coronavirus.
Even more telling are the daily counts of positive COVID-19 cases, which reached 513 on July 17. It is the largest daily number since 585 on May 1, more than two and a half months ago. The peak to date was 725 on April 25.
Here are the daily case numbers for the last ten days available, balancing along a generally upward trajectory:
July 18: 427
July 17: 513
July 16: 507
July 15: 470
July 14: 400
July 13: 387
July 12: 394
July 11: 480
July 10: 492
July 9: 461
Hospitalization data follow a similar trend. The total of 273 for people hospitalized with COVID-19 on July 17 and again on July 19 represents the highest number in this category since the count of 297 on May 31. The record to date was 888 on April 14.
The increase in hospitalizations is even more direct than the number of reported daily cases, as seen in the statistics of the last ten days:
July 19: 273
July 18: 268
July 17: 273
July 16: 260
July 15: 247
July 14: 252
July 13: 220
July 12: 220
July 11: 215
July 10: 211
So far, however, daily deaths from COVID-19 remain low, with the most recent being recorded on July 15. Here is the summary of the previous ten days:
July 15: 2
July 14: 4
July 13: 1
July 12: 4
July 11: 3
July 10: 2
July 9: 2
July 8: 2
July 7: 6
July 6: 4
On the ABC This weekPolis repeated much of the reasoning for his mask order he had shared during last week’s announcement, citing analyzes showing that counties with such mandates tend to have fewer cases than those without one. But on NBC Meet the pressHe was pushed harder by host Chuck Todd on a number of issues, including Colorado among the bottom eleven states in the US when it comes to testing.
Polis responded by arguing that states with the highest number of cases tend to have the highest number of tests, then touted Denver’s free testing facilities at the Pepsi Center with the kind of stumbling block capable of making Coloradoers shrink: He called the arena the “home of the Broncos.” “But he also made one of his strongest statements to date about the Trump administration’s failures to cope with the pandemic, maintaining that” the national testing scene is a total disgrace “and noting that delays in the results of six to nine days, or sometimes even more, from the national testing services make them “almost useless from an epidemiological or even diagnostic perspective.”
Locally, the Polis office issued statements of support regarding its mask order from the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, the president of the Pueblo Chamber of Commerce, the president and CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Colorado Hispanic Contractors and various other business and civic organizations.
Tourism leaders also supported the measure, including Doug Price, president and CEO of Visit Colorado Springs. “In Colorado Springs, we understand the importance of visitors practicing responsible tourism (wear a mask when in public, practice social distancing, avoid crowded roads, stay home when sick, know before you go, etc. ), “Price said. “We have the dedication of all of our tourist attractions / businesses to follow strict guidelines in order to serve the public safely. We must keep hotels open and continue to increase the number of capacity to heal the local economy. Companies like The Broadmoor and Flying W Ranch just reopened, if we’re going to keep it that way, we need everyone to work together. “
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