COLORADO, USA —
More than 20,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Colorado and just over 1,000 people have died from the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, according to data released Tuesday.
The latest numbers also show that almost 3,700 people have been hospitalized from the COVID-19 in the state. The rest of the data is farther down in this story.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser is calling for the federal government to take action to protect meat and poultry processing plant employees who have been deemed essential employees during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Weiser said there are measures that should be instituted to protect these workers, address the potential spread of COVID-19 and support the goal of keeping the plants open. That includes priority testing for workers in the processing plants and making sure workers have immediate access to adequate personal protective equipment (PPE).
“We need mandatory and enforceable health and safety measures to protect employees at meat and poultry processing facilities," Weiser said. "As we have witnessed in Colorado, COVID-19 outbreaks at these facilities threaten to result in wider community spread and put more lives and our food supply at risk."
Also on Tuesday, Gov. Jared Polis launched Spanish language Facebook and Twitter pages to help disseminate information related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Polis said the social pages will provide the latest news from his office, resources and educational information related to COVID-19.
Those are among the coronavirus updates for the state Tuesday. More details are below, and we'll continue to post information as it comes in throughout the day.
>VIDEO: Midday COVID-19 headlines for March 12
WHAT TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
- 20,157 cases, 3,695 hospitalized, 1,009 deaths Get the latest data from the Colorado Dept. of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE).
- On Monday, April 27, Colorado transitioned to a "safer-at-home" order.
- Denver began requiring face masks in public places on Wednesday, May 6.
- A cafe in Castle Rock openly violated the safer-at-home order on Sunday, May 10, prompting the governor and CDPHE to suspend its license "indefinitely," Polis said during a Monday news conference.
- The Colorado General Assembly will postpone its return until the week of May 25.
- A Denver City Councilwoman launched a new website Monday that serves as a database directing consumers to open, local businesses.
- Coloradans can once again camp at many state campgrounds starting Tuesday.
- Polis has launched Spanish language Facebook and Twitter pages to help keep Spanish-speaking residents informed during the pandemic.
Colorado schools get millions in federal emergency relief
Colorado Education Commissioner Katy Anthes announced Tuesday that nearly $121 million in emergency federal relief will be made available to Colorado school districts through the federal Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Money for districts can be used for a wide variety of expenses related to the coronavirus pandemic, including purchasing cleaning supplies and educational technology, providing support for at-risk students and providing summer learning opportunities as well as activities already allowed under other federal education laws.
The funding is Colorado’s portion of the $13 billion Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund designated for states under the CARES Act passed by Congress in March.
About 90% of the funding will be divided among school districts using the Title I formula that allocates federal funding each fiscal year for low-income students. The rest may be reserved at the state level for statewide support to districts in response to COVID-19 or to provide additional grant opportunities
AG Weiser urges federal government to take action to protect meat plant workers
Attorney General Phil Weiser on Tuesday joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general calling for the federal government to take action regarding the health and safety of meat and poultry processing plant employees.
According to a release from the AG's office, over 10,000 COVID-19 cases and 45 worker deaths have been tied to meat processing plants across the country, including 340 reported positive cases and eight reported deaths at Colorado facilities.
“There are a set of measures that should be instituted to protect these workers, address the potential spread of COVID-19 and support the goal of keeping the plants open," Weiser said. "I commend those meat processing plants who are already instituting such measures and call on others to adopt them as well.”
In their letter, the attorneys general say health and safety standards must be stronger, mandatory, and enforceable That includes priority testing for workers in the processing plants and making sure workers have immediate access to adequate PPE, among other requests.
The letter from the coalition of attorneys general can be found here.
Polis launches Spanish social media pages for COVID-19 crisis
The Colorado governor launched Spanish language Facebook and Twitter pages on Tuesday to help disseminate information related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Polis said the social pages will provide the latest news from his office, resources and educational information related to the coronavirus crisis.
“Now, more than ever we need to be communicating with as many Coloradans as possible,” Polis said. “By launching these new social media pages, we hope that we can further connect with Spanish speaking Coloradans and ensure they are getting the latest information as it’s being released. We are all in this together and we will get through this together.”
Campgrounds at state parks to begin reopening today
Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) will begin to reopen campgrounds at state parks on Tuesday.
Coloradans looking to camp must make a reservation ahead of time at cpwshop.com. Polis on Monday said the reopening process will be in coordination with local counties and will take into account any local restrictions that are in place.
"We ask that campers be very mindful that camping today may look very different from what you might be used to, but we are excited for people to be able to begin planning their next camping trip in Colorado.”
Campers should follow best practices for recreational travel, including bringing your meals with you, filling up on gas prior to leaving home, bringing cleaning supplies and personal hygiene items and remembering to wear masks when out in public, CPW said.
Coronavirus cases in Colorado
In Colorado, CDPHE reports 20,157 people have tested positive for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, up from 19,879 the day prior.
Fatalities
CDPHE reports that 1,009 people have died, up from 987 the day before. The majority of deaths — 54.61% — are among people over age 80; 23.19% of deaths occurred in people between ages 70-79 and 13.38% were in people ages 60-69.
The graph below shows the total number of people in Colorado who have died after a COVID-19 diagnosis, since the first death happened on March 13.
The median number of new deaths per day is 16 for the first 11 days of May. For the same time period in April, a median of 15 more people died each day.
This graph shows the number of people who died on a specific day.
Date of death may not be available for all deaths. As of Tuesday, CDPHE knew the date of death for 92% of COVID-19-related deaths.
The numbers for each date may change. The totals will rise as we learn of new deaths.
Hospitalizations
Of those who tested positive for the disease, 3,695 hospitalizations have been reported, up from 3,663 the day prior.
As of 3 p.m. on May 12, 563 patients are currently hospitalized with the disease, according to the most recent data from the Colorado Hospital Association. Within the last 24 hours, 38 patients have been transferred or discharged.
This graphic shows the number of people currently hospitalized with a COVID-19 diagnosis and the number of people who have been discharged within 24 hours. This is a key metric because it can be an indicator of whether or not Colorado’s hospital system is being overwhelmed by the virus.
Those currently hospitalized dropped 19% from last Monday.
Testing
According to CDPHE, 109,304 people have been tested, up from 106,761 the day prior, and 60 counties are reporting cases, the same number as the day before.
This graphic shows the number of tests the state processed in a day. This is another key metric because the state’s ability to reopen will depend on the number of tests Colorado can run each day. As testing improves, the number of cases will rise because the more tests that are conducted, the more cases will be found.
Colorado processed a median of 1,851.5 tests a day for the first 10 days of April. Now the median is 3,385 for the first 10 days of May.
Cases by county
- Denver: 4,187
- Arapahoe: 3,370
- Adams: 2,322
- Weld: 2,190
- Jefferson: 1,678
- El Paso: 1,157
- Boulder: 788
- Douglas: 607
- Eagle: 561
- Morgan: 521
- Larimer: 455
- Logan: 473
- Broomfield: 201
- Pueblo: 188
- Gunnison: 174
- Summit: 171
- Montrose: 127
- Garfield: 111
- Chaffee: 68
- La Plata: 66
- Routt: 59
- Delta: 55
- Pitkin: 54
- Mesa: 51
- Elbert: 40
- Crowley: 39
- Alamosa: 33
- Teller: 31
- Kit Carson: 25
- Montezuma: 25
- Fremont: 23
- Lake: 23
- San Miguel: 22
- Park: 16
- Clear Creek: 15
- Baca: 12
- Yuma: 11
- Otero: 10
- Washington: 9
- Prowers: 9
- Philips: 9
- Archuleta: 8
- Saguache: 8
- Rio Grande: 7
- Moffat: 6
- Ouray: 6
- Grand: 5
- Cheyenne: 5
- Las Animas: 4
- Costilla: 3
- Hinsdale: 3
- Lincoln: 3
- Huerfano: 3
- Mineral: 2
- Custer: 2
- Rio Blanco: 1
- Conejos: 1
- Gilpin: 1
- San Juan: 1
- Bent: 1
- Unknown or pending: 101
Please note that there may be a lull or spike in reported case data due to how it's reported. CDPHE data changes as labs, hospitals, facilities and local agencies report their own data. For example, a spike in the number of deaths does not necessarily mean that many more people died within 24 hours, but rather is indicative of when the data is entered into the system. New data is released daily at 4 p.m.
COVID-19 is a disease caused by a virus that first appeared in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. Symptoms of COVID-19 can include fever, cough and breathing trouble. Most patients develop only mild symptoms. But some people, usually those with other medical complications, develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal.
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