500-plus virus cases counted in Wisconsin in midst of stay-at-home debate
Wisconsin National Guard members perform COVID-19 tests in a parking lot Monday May 11, 2020, in Milwaukee. This was one of two sites in the city to open Monday and offer free testing.[Morry Gash/Associated Press]
Wisconsin health officials on Saturday reported more than 500 new cases of the coronavirus, as communities and counties continued to debate their plans after the state Supreme Court rescinded a statewide stay-at-home order.
Some local health officials in Wisconsin rescinded their stay-at-home orders Friday after attorneys warned they could be vulnerable to legal challenges. Wisconsin’s largest counties, Milwaukee and Dane, home to about 1.5 million of the state’s 6 million residents, left their orders in place.
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Meanwhile, the Department of Health Services update shows that the number of COVID-19 cases across the state has gone over 12,100. The total number of hospitalizations has topped 2,000, after an increase of 41 from Friday’s report.
There were eight new deaths in the last day, raising the overall mark to 453.
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.