Wisconsin breaks single-day records for COVID-19 deaths, cases

by Celine Castronuovo - 10/13/20 3:53 PM ET

Wisconsin on Tuesday reached a new state record for the number of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in a single day with 3,279 reported infections, according to the state’s department of health.

Tuesday’s numbers surpass Wisconsin’s previous single-day record increase of 3,132 cases on Oct. 8.

There were also 34 new deaths on Tuesday, hitting a record for the state’s largest single-day increase in deaths, up from its previous high of 27 on Sept. 30.

The health department has now recorded a total of 155,471 total confirmed infections since COVID-19 first hit the state, with 1,508 people dead as a result of the virus.

As of Tuesday, 8,601 people in Wisconsin had been hospitalized as a result of COVID-19, with 147 new hospitalizations reported on Tuesday.

The rising number of infections in the Midwestern state has led Gov. Tony Evers (D) to reimpose restrictions on businesses and other activities, leading to pushback from Wisconsin Republicans.

On Monday, a Wisconsin judge ruled in favor of Evers continuing enforcement of the state’s mandatory mask mandate after the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, backed by the state’s GOP-controlled legislature, argued that the governor overstepped his executive authority by issuing multiple emergency orders to slow the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rick Esenberg, the group’s president, said they would appeal the decision after it was announced Monday, calling the issue a “critical constitutional matter.”

Evers had implemented a 60-day public health emergency in March and renewed the order in July after the legislature did not extend it. The July order required all residents to wear a mask when indoors in public. An order last month extended the mandate to Nov. 21 amid a surge in COVID-19 cases in the state and implemented a $200 fine for those who do not comply.

After Wisconsin hit the Oct. 8 single-day increase record, Evers issued a tweet calling on residents to “get back to the basics in fighting this virus” and to “stay home, limit gatherings and travel, and wear a mask whenever you go out so we can flatten the curve and get back on track.”