Wisconsin activates field hospital as COVID keeps surging

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin health officials announced Wednesday that a field hospital will open next week at the state fairgrounds near Milwaukee as a surge in COVID-19 cases threatens to overwhelm hospitals.

Wisconsin has become a hot spot for the disease over the last month, ranking third nationwide this week in daily new cases per capita. Health experts have attributed the spike to the reopening of colleges and K-12 schools as well as general fatigue over wearing masks and socially distancing.

State Department of Health Services Secretary Andrea Palm told reporters during a video conference that the facility will open on Oct. 14.

“We hoped this day wouldn’t come, but unfortunately, Wisconsin is in a much different, more dire place today and our healthcare systems are beginning to become overwhelmed by the surge of COVID-19 cases,” Democratic Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement. “This alternative care facility will take some of the pressure off our healthcare facilities while expanding the continuum of care for folks who have COVID-19."

The move also came as a state judge was considering a lawsuit seeking to strike down Evers' mandate that masks be worn in enclosed public spaces.

Only 16% of the state's 11,452 hospital beds were available as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the state Department of Health Services. The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients had grown to 853, it's highest during the pandemic according to the COVID Tracking Project, with 216 in intensive care.

Results of COVID-19 tests on an additional 262 in-patients in Wisconsin were pending. The southeastern region of the state had 250 COVID-19 patients, the most of any of the state's seven hospital regions.

Nationwide, about 30,000 coronavirus patients are hospitalized, the COVID...