SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - South Dakota reported a record number of daily COVID-19 deaths on Thursday, with 19 people who have died.
The number of hospitalizations also inched up to 413 people, marking the fifth day in a row that it has hit a new high.
The state is experiencing one of the nation’s worst waves of the virus, posting the nation’s second-highest number of new cases over the last two weeks, according to Johns Hopkins researchers. There were about 1,336 new cases per 100,000 people. That means that one out of roughly every 75 people in the state has tested positive for the virus in the last two weeks.
Virus infections have shown little sign of slowing down, with the rolling average number of daily new cases increasing as well. The Department of Health reported 1,000 new cases on Thursday, pushing the state past 12,000 active infections.
Gov. Kristi Noem has downplayed the severity of the virus in recent days while highlighting the state’s economic outloook.
State labor officials reported that new unemployment claims have declined. During Oct. 18 to Oct. 24, 391 claims were processed by the Department of Labor and Regulation. A total of 4,375 people were receiving unemployment benefits on Oct. 17.
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