NOTE: This is the live blog from April 11-12. Click here for the live blog from Monday, April 13.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Colorado continues to rise as hospitalizations and deaths follow the same upward trend. At last check, the number of people who have succumbed to the virus has reached 290, while 1,417 people have been hospitalized. There have been 7,303 positive cases as of 4 p.m. Sunday.
READ MORE: List of Colorado businesses that are open
Click here for the latest update on the number of cases, the age, gender and location of presumptive positive, indeterminate and confirmed cases from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
Below, we're updating this blog with the latest information regarding COVID-19 in Colorado and around the world.
Latest updates:
Sunday, April 12
4:05 p.m. | Number of cases, deaths continue to rise
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment released an updated summery of COVID-19 in Colorado Sunday.
The number of cases of the novel coronavirus in Colorado increased by 410, with the CDPHE announcing 7,303 people had tested positive as of 4 p.m. Sunday.
A total of 41 more people were hospitalized, bringing the total of hospitalizations to 1,417. State health officials said 290 people have now died from the disease, an increase of 16 from Saturday’s numbers.
One more outbreak at a long-term care facility has been reported, bring the total number of outbreaks to 68 Saturday.
The new virus is also now present in 56 of Colorado's 64 counties. The CDPHE said 2,280 more tests had been received by the state, bringing the total number of people who have been tested for COVID-19 to 37,153.
State health and government officials believe there could be between 12,000 and 33,000 cases of COVID-19 in Colorado, but are prioritizing testing for those who are most at-risk
11:39 a.m. | Nursing homes deaths soar past 2,600 nationwide in alarming surge
(AP) More than 2,600 deaths have been linked to coronavirus outbreaks in nursing homes and long-term care facilities nationwide, an alarming rise in just the past two weeks. Because the federal government has not been releasing a count of its own, The Associated Press has kept its own running tally based on media reports and state health departments. The latest count of at least 2,646 deaths is up from about 450 deaths just 10 days ago. Experts say even that is likely an undercount because most state numbers don’t include those who died without ever being tested for COVID-19. In Colorado, at least 19 deaths have been reported at two Aurora nursing facilities, Cherry Creek Nursing Center and Juniper Village. There have been more than 65 outbreaks of the novel coronavirus at residential and non-hospital health care facilities since COVID-19 arrived in Colorado a little more than a month ago.
10:15 a.m. | IRS deposits first round of coronavirus stimulus checks into bank accounts
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said in a tweet on Saturday that it has deposited its first wave of coronavirus stimulus checks into the bank accounts of qualifying Americans. The money is from the $2.2 trillion stimulus package passed by Congress that is aimed at keeping Americans and the economy afloat during the COVID-19 crisis.
10:01 a.m. | UK's Johnson leaves hospital as virus deaths exceed 10,000
(AP) British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has expressed his gratitude to the staff of the National Health Service for saving his life when his experience with the coronavirus could have “gone either way.” Johnson said in a video posted on Twitter after his discharge from St. Thomas’ Hospital in London on Sunday that it was “hard to find the words” to express his debt of gratitude. He named in particular two nurses who stood by his bedside for 48 hours. Johnson’s office said in a statement that he would continue his recovery at the prime minister’s country house. On Sunday, the U.K. became the fourth European country to surpass 10,000 virus-related deaths.
9:57 a.m. | Park rangers, Sheriff deputies to enforce rolling closures of Jeffco open space parks at capacity
Park rangers and sheriff deputies are now enforcing rolling closures of open space parks in Jefferson County after reports of big crowds and potentially unsafe behavior.
Saturday, April 11
4:50 p.m. | Easter tornado threat poses safety dilemma during pandemic
(AP) The threat of strong tornadoes on Easter is posing a double-edged safety dilemma for Deep South communities deciding how to protect themselves during the coronavirus pandemic. Forecasters say an outbreak of severe thunderstorms with powerful twisters is likely Sunday from Louisiana through the Tennessee Valley. More than 4.5 million people live in the area where dangerous weather is most likely, including Birmingham, Alabama, and Jackson, Mississippi. While churches generally aren't holding indoor services, some plan drive-in worship in vehicles, which aren't safe during tornadoes. Some communities have waffled on whether to open storm shelters because of the virus threat.
4:06 p.m. | 24 more deaths, 64 more hospitalizations in latest Colorado COVID-19 numbers
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment released an updated summery of COVID-19 in Colorado Saturday. The number of cases of the novel coronavirus in Colorado increased by 383, with the CDPHE announcing 6,893 people had tested positive as of 4 p.m. Saturday.
A total of 64 more people were hospitalized, bringing the total of hospitalizations to 1,376. State health officials said 274 people have now died from the disease, an increase of 24 from Friday’s numbers.
Eight more outbreaks at long-term care facilities have been reported, bring the total number of outbreaks to 67 Saturday.
The new virus is also now present in 56 of Colorado's 64 counties. The CDPHE said 2,220 more tests had been received by the state, bringing the total number of people who have been tested for COVID-19 to 34,873.
State health and government officials believe there could be between 12,000 and 33,000 cases of COVID-19 in Colorado, but are prioritizing testing for those who are most at-risk
3:48 p.m. | Gov. Jared Polis suspends certain requirements for state facilities in effort to combat COVID-19
Governor Polis has suspended certain regulatory statutes concerning juvenile justice, regional centers, and behavioral health facilities in an effort to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. In an executive order signed Saturday, the governor suspended the authority given to the juvenile parole board to grant, deny, or defer parole “except juveniles committed to CDHS as Aggravated Juvenile Offenders.” The order also suspends visitation policies and clothing options at mental health facilities.
1:33 p.m. | Cherry Creek and Chatfield state parks to resume staffing entrance stations
In an effort to help reinforce the advice and guidelines from Colorado Governor Jared Polis and health officials, Colorado Parks and Wildlife will be resuming staffing entrance stations during high use times at both Cherry Creek and Chatfield State Parks.
Visitors were able to purchase daily or annual passes necessary for access to the parks using a credit or debit card when the gates were not staffed. However, connectivity issues and long lines at the entrances did not allow for proper social distancing.
12:10 p.m. | Doctor gambles on clot-busting drug to save virus patients
(AP) With high-stress, high-stakes decisions, doctors around the world are frantically trying to figure out how COVID-19 is killing their patients so they can attempt new ways to fight back. One growing theory is that in the sickest of the sick, little blood clots might be clogging the lungs. At New York's Mount Sinai Hospital, a lung specialist took a gamble. He's given a few patients near death both a clot-busting drug and a blood thinner to block new clots from forming. There's no proof it works, but it's the latest example of a strategy doctors want to study.
11:22 a.m. | Emergency alert issued as reminder for stay-at-home extension
The Colorado Department of Emergency Management sent a phone alert to residents Saturday morning to remind them that the stay-at-home order has been extended. The original stay-at- home order was in effect until Saturday April 11. It was extended to April 26 by Gov. Jared Polis this week. The alert was issued as an official reminder of the extension, the department tweeted.
10:54 a.m. | US death toll overtakes Italy's as the Midwest braces
(AP) The U.S. has overtaken Italy for the highest death toll in the world from the coronavirus, as Chicago and other cities across the Midwest brace for a potential surge in victims and moved to snuff out smoldering hot spots of contagion before they erupt. With the New York metropolitan still deep in crisis, fear is mounting over the spread of the virus into the nation’s heartland. Twenty-four residents of an Indiana nursing home hit by COVID-19 have died. Chicago’s Cook County has set up a temporary morgue that can take more than 2,000 bodies. And Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has been going around telling groups of people to “break it up.”
10:49 a.m. | At least 16 COVID-19 deaths reported at 2 Aurora nursing homes
The COVID-19 outbreak has struck two Aurora nursing homes especially hard.
The Cherry Creek Nursing Center, located at 14699 E Hampden Ave, and Juniper Village at Aurora, located at 11901 E Mississippi Ave, have combined seen at least 16 deaths related to the virus, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE).
There have been 19 deaths in the past couple of weeks at Cherry Creek Nursing Center. However, only 11 of those deaths have been confirmed to be COVID-19 related, according to Joe Gimenez, a spokesperson for the nursing center. Juniper Village has reported eight deaths, five of which have been confirmed as related to COVID-19. The coroner considers the remaining three deaths as probable cases of COVID-19, according to the CDPHE.
Click here for the live blog from Friday, April 10, 2020.
