NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana saw more than 30,000 new cases of COVID-19 over the New Year’s weekend, according to new data published by the state’s health department.
The Louisiana Department of Health reported 31,161 new cases and 15 new deaths in the four days since Thursday, Dec. 30. The state’s COVID-19 dashboard was not updated on Friday because of the New Year’s Eve holiday.
COVID-19 hospitalizations across the state have also drastically spiked over that time period. On Sunday there were 1,106 people hospitalized with the virus across the state - 225 more patients since Dec. 30. Before the Omicron variant surged through the state in mid-December, Louisiana was reporting a pandemic low of about 200 COVID-19 hospitalizations.
The health department said that 77 percent of people currently hospitalized were not vaccinated.
The LDH said that the largest increase in new cases is among ages 18 to 29 (23%) and 30-39 (18%).
With the state’s newly reported data, Louisiana surpassed another grim COVID-19 milestone: More than 15,000 people have died in the state since the pandemic began.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been affected by the death of a loved one due to COVID-19,” the LDH said.
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