Colorado confirms 329 coronavirus deaths as hospitalizations surpass 1,500

At least 329 people have died of the novel coronavirus in Colorado, while more than 1,500 have been hospitalized, state health officials announced Tuesday.

A total of 7,941 people have tested positive for COVID-19, the highly infectious respiratory illness caused by the virus, even as health officials say a lack of widespread testing means the actual number of cases is likely four to 10 times higher. Just under 40,000 people have been tested, though testing numbers from Monday slumped to a total of 1,076 — down from 2,683 on Saturday.

Colorado officials also confirmed 78 outbreaks at residential and non-hospital health care facilities, with a Greeley nursing home reporting as many as 21 deaths related to the new coronavirus.

The state health department announces new totals daily of coronavirus deaths and confirmed cases based on what’s reported up from Colorado’s counties; though the deaths and positive test results may be announced on a particular day, they may have occurred any time in the past and are just now being reported to the state.

Tuesday’s reported deaths were 21 more than the total announced Monday.

Even as the death toll continues to rise, Colorado health officials on Tuesday said social distancing and the effects of the statewide stay-at-home order have contributed to a slowing, and even a plateauing, of novel coronavirus cases. The volume of patients being admitted to hospitals has also flattened, top health officials said, even as the state continues to prepare for a potential surge in patients in case hospitals come overwhelmed.

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