This article was originally published by Jacob Scholl in the Idaho Statesman.
Boise State has reported more than double the amount of new coronavirus cases this week from the previous week.
The university added 94 cases to its totals on Friday for the week of Oct. 30 - Nov. 5, according to BSU’s website.During the previous week — Oct. 23-29 — the university reported only 43 cases.
The majority of the newly reported cases, 66, came from students who live off campus. Faculty and staff added five cases to the weekly total, and the remaining 23 cases were reported among students who live on campus.
Friday’s total is the second-highest weekly count for the university since it started keeping track of COVID-19 cases in August. The highest total was reported for the week of Sept. 25-Oct. 1, when 97 cases were made public.
Campus isolation beds are 17% full as of Friday, as 26 beds are occupied out of the 153 available beds.
On Monday, the University of Idaho reported just seven new cases found on campus between Oct. 24-30, a noticeable decrease from the week prior, when 21 new positives were found on campus.
Idaho State University reported 49 new cases between the days of Oct. 28-Nov. 3. The university continues with a downward trend in cases since they peaked at 69 during the week of Sept. 30-Oct. 6.
IDAHO BREAKS RECORD — 1,301 NEW CORONAVIRUS CASES THURSDAY
For the third straight day, Idaho set a new record for the number of coronavirus cases being reported in a single day. Idaho health districts reported a total of 1,301 new cases of COVID-19 — 921 confirmed and 380 probable.
The state’s seven-day moving average reached an all-time high of 975.4 new cases per day.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported COVID-19 positive testing rates in the double digits for the week of Oct. 25-31, as the positive rate hit 14.7%.
Idaho reported eight new coronavirus deaths on Thursday, including three in Lemhi County — a place with only one previously reported death. Two deaths were reported in Canyon County, while single deaths were reported in Ada, Madison and Twin Falls.
As of Thursday, 672 Idahoans have died from the coronavirus. The state has 60,321 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, as well as 9,514 probable cases. The Department of Health and Welfare estimates that 31,574 of those cases have recovered.
Ada and Canyon counties reported confirmed case counts in the triple digits Thursday, with 191 and 121, respectively.
Numerous counties reported double-digit new case counts, including Bannock (21 new), Blaine (20), Bonner (10, Bonneville (31), Cassia (35), Gem (14), Jefferson (10), Jerome (25), Kootenai (74), Latah (16), Madison (46), Minidoka (26), Nez Perce (60), Payette (21), Teton (15) and Twin Falls (95).
Health and Welfare reports that there are 398,721 people who have been tested for the coronavirus in Idaho, with around 15.1% of those tests returning positive.
All counties except Adams have reports of community spread.
All of Idaho’s 44 counties have confirmed cases of the coroanvirus: Ada 16,019, Adams 66, Bannock 2,008, Bear Lake 79, Benewah 192, Bingham 1,335, Blaine 915, Boise 79, Bonner 498, Bonneville 3,947, Boundary 102, Butte 92, Camas 38, Canyon 10,050, Caribou 234, Cassia 1,451, Clark 34, Clearwater 158, Custer 92, Elmore 439, Franklin 340, Fremont 492, Gem 419, Gooding 541, Idaho 418, Jefferson 866, Jerome 1,160, Kootenai 4,492, Latah 1,039, Lemhi 286, Lewis 95, Lincoln 228, Madison 2,586, Minidoka 1,215, Nez Perce 1,084, Oneida 68, Owyhee 384, Payette 1,064, Power 325, Shoshone 298, Teton 305, Twin Falls 4,194, Valley 135, Washington 459.
