The Vermont Department of Health reported 268 new cases of Covid-19 Thursday, a higher-than-average total that follows a pattern of wildly varying case totals over the past 10 days.
The state hit a record 330 cases on Sept. 15, a total resulting at least in part from a computer error that led to delayed test results. The department said the issue was resolved as of Sept. 16.
Then the department reported several days of lower numbers, including a relative low of 98 cases in one day on Monday. Thursday’s 268 cases were roughly double the total from just the day before.
Some variation is normal depending on the day of the week. The department has also recently been revising the number of cases from the day before as it struggles to turn around test results in time for the daily update. Wednesday’s totals were revised from 121 cases to 135.
The seven-day average remains above 200, among Vermont’s highest averages since the start of the pandemic.
Forty people were in the hospital with the virus, including 14 people in intensive care units. The department reported no new deaths.
Rutland County reported its highest one-day total since the start of the pandemic, with 43 cases.
Orleans County reported its second-highest total, with 66 cases; the high of 110 cases came on March 2, when the state reported a Newport prison outbreak. As of the state’s Tuesday modeling report, Orleans County had the highest rate of cases per capita in Vermont.
The state does not report the number of hospitalizations or deaths by county.
