BROOKINGS – The state is reporting 195 new positive COVID-19 cases and no new deaths in South Dakota Tuesday.
Three of the new cases are in Brookings County.
Brookings County cases have risen to 603 total positive cases (three new Tuesday): 504 of those people have recovered (30 new), with 98 active cases (down by 27) and one death. A total of 4,003 people (21 new) have tested negative in Brookings County as of Tuesday, and eight people in the county have been hospitalized at some point, the state reported.
Brookings County is in the “substantial” community spread category. Substantial community spread means there are more than 100 cases per 100,000 people.
The number of South Dakotans who have tested positive for COVID-19 rose to 16,994 as of midday Tuesday, according to the South Dakota Department of Health.
Of the statewide cases, 2,386 are classified as active (down by 113 from Monday). As of Tuesday, 14,424 people have recovered (306 new), 1,195 people have been hospitalized at some point (24 new), 133 people are currently hospitalized (up by 23), and 184 people have died.
Current hospitalizations may include out-of-state cases, and total hospitalizations only include South Dakota residents.
The SDDOH website reports 149,102 people have tested negative (764 new) in South Dakota.
South Dakota's test positivity rate for the last week is at 11.1%, and 11.7% for the last two weeks, according to the SDDOH website. Brookings County’s test positivity rate for the last week is at 14.9%, and 20.5% for the last two weeks.
Increases in positive cases Tuesday included, but are not limited to, 15 in Brown County, nine in Clay, 21 in Lincoln, 13 in Meade, 40 in Minnehaha and 27 in Pennington.
The counties with the highest total case counts are Minnehaha (5,938), Pennington (1,841), Lincoln (1,108), Brown (946) and Beadle (666).
According to the South Dakota State University COVID-19 dashboard, as of noon Tuesday, 15 students and three faculty/staff were self-reporting current (active) positive tests. A total of 110 faculty, staff and students were quarantined and isolated as of Tuesday, with 19 of those in campus facilities.
“It is important to note SDSU has students taking classes at locations outside of Brookings and students who may be completely online. Those students are asked to complete the case notification form. As a result, SDSU data may not align with the South Dakota Department of Health data,” the dashboard says, at www.sdstate.edu/covid-19/covid-19-dashboard. The SDSU data is current, not cumulative.
The state Department of Health generally does not identify the specific communities within a county where cases are located, or a business, event or setting that may be the source of a surge to protect patient confidentiality.
Only a few exceptions are made, such as clusters when there are 40 or more cases identified in a single workplace/setting. The DOH will also issue a public health notice when an employee or patron of a business/event is unable to identify persons they were in close contact with (15 or more minutes within 6 feet or less) while able to transmit the virus.
The actual number of infections in the state is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested and studies suggest people can be infected without feeling sick.
The figures released by the state Department of Health do not include individuals who are asymptomatic or have symptoms of the coronavirus but are not being tested.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
Learn more at www.covid.sd.gov.
