by Melissa Davlin, Idaho Reports
On Wednesday, Idaho surpassed 4,000 recorded deaths due to COVID-19.
The state hit 3,000 deaths on Sept. 28, meaning the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare recorded 1,000 additional COVID deaths in just 72 days.
In comparison, it took 263 days for Idaho to hit its first 1,000 deaths – a milestone the state reached on Dec. 2, 2020. From there, it took 132 days to record its next thousand, and 168 days to get from 2,000 to 3,000 deaths.
The 4,000th death came as the statewide test positivity rate, or percentage of tests that come back positive, ticked up slightly to 7.1 percent after weeks of decline.
This comes after weeks of falling rates, and may be due at least in part to Thanksgiving gatherings in late November. And on Friday afternoon, Central District Health announced it the first recorded case of the highly transmissible Omicron variant in an Ada County resident who had recently traveled out of state.
The patient has experienced mild symptoms, likely because they are fully vaccinated.
The positivity rate continues to vary by region, with 11.8 percent in East Idaho Public Health District, and 5.6 in Central District Health. Hospitalizations have stayed roughly steady, and statewide ICU admissions are dropping slightly.
The Panhandle Health District remains under crisis standards of care.
Updated at 5 pm Friday, Dec. 10 to reflect a newly discovered case of the Omicron variant in Idaho.
Melissa Davlin | Host, Lead Producer
Melissa Davlin is the lead producer and host of Idaho Reports. She has covered the Idaho Legislature since 2012. She also produces for Outdoor Idaho and Idaho Public Television. She has won multiple awards for her work, including a regional Emmy for her documentary on Chinese immigration in Idaho, Idaho Press Club broadcast reporter of the year for 2015 and 2019, the Idaho Press Club First Amendment Award, and the 2019 Boise State University Enhancing Public Discourse award. She lives in Boise with her husband and two children.
Ruth Brown contributed to this report.
Ruth Brown | Producer
Ruth Brown grew up in South Dakota and her first job out of college was covering the South Dakota Legislature. She’s since moved on to Idaho lawmakers. Brown spent 10 years working in print journalism, including newspapers such as the Idaho Statesman and Idaho Press, where she’s covered everything from the correctional system to health care issues. She joined Idaho Reports in 2021 and looks forward to telling stories about how state policy can impact the lives of regular Idahoans.
