Updated: Region's hospitals filling up with COVID-19 patients; case numbers rising

Fewer than one in five of Southeast Missouri hospitals’ inpatient beds were available Tuesday, as hospitalizations involving COVID-19 continued to climb toward pandemic peak levels.

According to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, 16% of the region’s total inpatient beds were available, while 29% of the region’s intensive care unit beds were available. In Southeast Missouri, 77 patients were hospitalized Tuesday with the disease associated with coronavirus — 33 of those in intensive care. Twenty-three of those were on ventilators, though nearly 70% of the region’s ventilators were still available.

Across the state, 1,631 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized Tuesday, and 19% of the state’s inpatient beds were available. That number dropped to 17% for intensive care unit beds, with 477 patients across the state in intensive care units because of the virus. More than 250 patients (265) were on a ventilator, leaving 63% of the state’s ventilators available.

Cases increasing

Cape Girardeau County saw a hefty increase in new coronavirus cases over the past week, according to county public health center officials.

New cases jumped 326 for a total of 10,339 during the pandemic. Active cases in the county as of Wednesday were 320, up 135 from one week ago.

Officials also reported one virus-related death, bringing the county’s total to 138.

The county’s 14-day testing positivity rate was 12%, more than three times the rate of one month ago.

Cases of the virus and testing positivity rates continued to rise in the region over the past seven days. The latest available data from the state showed rising numbers in several area counties:

• Bollinger — 28 new cases, 27.3% increase compared to previous seven days; 22% testing positivity rate, 6.2-percentage-point increase compared to previous seven days
• Perry — 35 new cases, 5.9% increase compared to previous seven days; 22% testing positivity rate, 3.6-percentage-point increase compared to previous seven days
• Scott — 97 new cases, 12.8% increase compared to previous seven days; 21.5% testing positivity rate, 6.3-percentage-point increase compared to previous seven days
• Stoddard — 72 new cases, 9.1% increase compared to previous seven days; 26.3% testing positivity rate, 6.3-percentage-point increase compared to previous seven days.

Across the state, authorities reported 13,160 new virus cases in the past seven days, down 10% from the previous seven days. The testing positivity rate was 14.3%, down .7 percentage points from the previous week.

Vaccinations for the virus remained fairly stagnant. Across the state, 49.4% of the population has initiated a vaccination, and 42.3% has completed a vaccination regimen. In Southeast Missouri counties:

• Bollinger — 27.9% initiated, 24.1% completed
• Cape Girardeau — 41.1% initiated, 35.5 completed
• Perry — 33.5% initiated, 29.2% completed
• Scott — 37.9% initiated, 33.1% completed
• Stoddard — 32.3% initiated, 26.9% completed.