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COVID spreading faster in Wyoming than in all but one state in the U.S.

(Dan Cepeda, Oil City)

CASPER, Wyo. — Wyoming has been seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations since around the third week of September. Laboratory confirmed cases have nearly doubled in the span of a month.

As of Sept. 20, the state had 4,124 lab confirmed cases, according to the Wyoming Department of Health. That number had climbed to 8,070 confirmed cases among Wyoming residents, an addition of 3,946 confirmed cases in a month.

The virus is spreading among Wyoming’s population faster than every other state besides New Jersey, according to rt.live who track how fast COVID-19 is spreading in each state.

Wyoming had an effective reproduction rate of 1.26 as of Wednesday morning, behind only New Jersey’s where the Rt rate stood at 1.41.

“Rt represents the effective reproduction rate of the virus calculated for each locale,” rt.live explains. “It lets us estimate how many secondary infections are likely to occur from a single infection in a specific area. Values over 1.0 mean we should expect more cases in that area, values under 1.0 mean we should expect fewer.”

Rt.live uses data from The COVID Tracking Project, an initiative of The Atlantic Monthly Group.

The COVID Tracking Project’s data for Wyoming matches data provided by the Wyoming Department of Health. Both report the following COVID information for Wyoming as of Tuesday:

  • Total cases: 9,526
    • Lab confirmed cases: 8,070
    • Probable cases: 1,456
  • Hospitalizations: 66
  • COVID-19 related deaths: 61
  • Total recoveries (lab confirmed and probable cases): 6,944
  • Total COVID viral tests completed: 208,990
  • Total number of people tested: 116,091

The surge in COVID hospitalizations in Natrona County lead the Wyoming Medical Center to stop accepting most patients from outside the county last week, with the exception of trauma, heart attack and stroke patients.

The surge has not relented since last week. The Wyoming Department of Health reported a record number of COVID patients in hospitals across the state on Monday.

Wyoming also saw a record 251 new lab confirmed cases reported on Monday. Four additional COVID-19 related deaths among Wyoming residents were reported Tuesday, along with 146 new lab confirmed cases. There were 300 active lab confirmed cases in Natrona as of 3 pm Tuesday, according to the WDH.

With cases in Laramie County also surging, officials in the Cheyenne area have started considering mask mandates similar to mask mandates in effect in Teton County.

The ten counties with the highest number of active lab confirmed cases as of Tuesday include:

  • Albany: 401
  • Natrona: 300
  • Laramie: 281
  • Campbell: 179
  • Park: 150
  • Fremont: 159
  • Sheridan: 117
  • Lincoln: 81
  • Big Horn: 53
  • Teton: 44

Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon and State Health Officer Dr. Alexia Harrist are set to address the COVID situation during a press conference at 3 pm Wednesday.

Casper Mayor Steve Freel said during the city council’s meeting that he would likewise address the surging COVID situation during a press conference at 3 pm Thursday.

This article originally appeared on Oil City News. Used with permission.


The Wyoming Department of Health provides COVID-19 case, variant, death, testing, hospital and vaccine data online. The department also shares information about how the data can be interpreted. COVID-19 safety recommendations are available from the CDC.


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