The average daily number of new hospitalizations for Covid-19 in Vermont has nearly doubled in the past week, according to data from a state modeling report.
For the week ending April 25, Vermont averaged 11.7 new hospitalizations per day, compared to six the week before, according to the state Department of Financial Regulation.
The department’s report comes in lieu of the state’s weekly Covid press conference, which is typically held on Tuesdays. Gov. Phil Scott and other state officials did not address Covid at their press conference this week, which was held at a job fair in Essex Junction.
The latest report, combined with daily data from the Vermont Department of Health, reveals a growing surge in both cases and hospitalizations from the BA.2 subvariant.
As of Tuesday, 51 people were hospitalized with Covid, a 16% increase from last week and an 82% increase from two weeks ago. Six people were in intensive care. The modeling report said the average number of intensive care patients had dropped, but warned that “low counts create instability in the percentage change.”
At previous press conferences, state officials have noted that about half of Covid patients come into the hospital for different reasons and test positive for Covid when they arrive.
But with hospitalizations rising, hospital capacity — the number of beds open for patients — has begun to drop. In mid-March, about 100 hospital beds were open statewide at any one time. This week, it’s about 50 to 60 beds, according to the report.
Open intensive care beds have also dropped from a high of roughly 25 in March to about 15 to 20 in the past week, according to the report. That’s largely attributable to non-Covid patients, who accounted for about 75% of intensive care stays in recent days.
Cases and self-reporting on the rise
Covid cases continue to rise as well, according to the modeling report, but a little more slowly than in previous weeks. Cases increased about 8.5% this week from the week before, compared to a 27% increase last week and a 29% increase the week before.
Officials have warned that Covid case counts may not be reliable because they are mostly based on PCR testing data, which doesn’t account for at-home antigen tests. The health department released the latest week of antigen test results submitted by Vermonters, showing yet another rise in the number of self-reported results.
Vermont’s recent Covid case rate remains the highest in the nation, according to The New York Times. The state has the fourth-highest rate of hospitalization compared to its population, with two other nearby states, New York and Maine, also ranking in the top five.
The health department reported 327 new Covid cases on Tuesday. The seven-day average is 306 cases per day, up from 283 on Monday.
The state also reported one additional death in April, for a total of nine deaths so far this month. Overall, 630 people have died since the beginning of the pandemic.