Wisconsin Gov. restricts public indoor gatherings as coronavirus cases continue to surge

Gabe Gutierrez, NBC News correspondent, joins Shepard Smith to talk about the rising coronavirus cases in the Midwest and Northeast, prompting Wisconsin's governor to restrict public indoor gatherings as coronavirus cases continue to surge. For access to live and exclusive video from CNBC subscribe to CNBC PRO: https://cnb.cx/2NGeIvi Coronavirus outbreaks that once swept through the East Coast and America’s Sun Belt states are now surging in the nation’s Great Plains as North Dakota and South Dakota report more new Covid-19 cases per capita than any other state across the nation. South Dakota is reporting roughly 57 daily Covid-19 cases per 100,000 residents, the highest of any state in the U.S. based on a weekly average as of Wednesday, according to a CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. North Dakota, which ranks closely in second, is reporting just over 56 new Covid-19 cases per 100,000 residents. Nationwide, coronavirus cases were growing by 5% or more, based on a weekly average, in more than 30 U.S. states as of Wednesday, according to Johns Hopkins data. New coronavirus cases grew by more than 8% compared with the week prior, averaging over 45,200 daily new cases. North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Montana, Minnesota, Kentucky, Indiana, Colorado and Alaska reached record highs for average new cases, according to Johns Hopkins data. Wisconsin activates surge hospital In Wisconsin, which is reporting the third-highest number of infections per capita in the U.S., the state’s outbreak has started to take a “dire” turn as Covid-19 hospitalizations reach record levels. Gov. Tony Evers said Wednesday that the outbreak threatens to overwhelm the state’s health care systems and their ability to treat severely-ill patients. Evers announced that the state would activate a 530-bed alternative care facility at the Wisconsin State Fair Park for overflow coronavirus patients. As of Wednesday, there were more than 870 people hospitalized with the coronavirus in Wisconsin, according to state data. “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,” Evers said in a statement. Andrea Palm, secretary-designee of Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services, said that hospitals across the state are experiencing critical staffing shortages largely because health-care workers are “experiencing infection or exposure to the virus in their communities.” Only 16% of Wisconsin’s licensed hospital beds are immediately available, with a quarter of their hospitalized coronavirus patients in the intensive-care unit, according to the state’s dashboard. More than 300 health-care workers said they were experiencing Covid-19 symptoms or tested positive as of late September. » Subscribe to CNBC TV: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCtelevision » Subscribe to CNBC: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC » Subscribe to CNBC Classic: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCclassic Turn to CNBC TV for the latest stock market news and analysis. From market futures to live price updates CNBC is the leader in business news worldwide. The News with Shepard Smith is CNBC’s daily news podcast providing deep, non-partisan coverage and perspective on the day’s most important stories. Available to listen by 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm PT daily beginning September 30: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/29/the-n... Connect with CNBC News Online Get the latest news: http://www.cnbc.com/ Follow CNBC on LinkedIn: https://cnb.cx/LinkedInCNBC Follow CNBC News on Facebook: Follow CNBC News on Twitter: https://cnb.cx/FollowCNBC Follow CNBC News on Instagram: https://cnb.cx/InstagramCNBC For info on the best credit cards go to CNBC Select: https://www.cnbc.com/select/best-cred... #CNBC #CNBCTV