Louisiana continues to ease out of the latest surge as the number of new COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations continue to decline.
New cases and hospitalizations continue to decline this week, dropping from the high numbers recorded during the Omicron variant’s peak in January.
The state is also seeing a decline in the percentage of tests returning positive. Between Jan. 27 to Feb. 2, about 14.3% of tests returned as positive, compared to the around 20% reported the week prior. However, the entire state is still classified as high community risk for the virus, which means there is widespread, uncontrolled transmission with many undetected cases.
Hospitalizations fueled by the highly contagious Omicron variant in the U.S. have also begun falling after peaking at record levels in some communities. But doctors are warning that the wave is leaving behind lots of postponed surgeries and an increasingly worn-out health care workforce in its wake. Across the U.S., the number of people in the hospital with COVID-19 has tumbled more than 28% over the past three weeks to about 105,000 on average.
