Four of five counties served by the Panhandle Health District now in ‘red’ risk category
COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — Bonner County now joins Kootenai, Boundary and Shoshone Counties in the “red” risk category.
This means these counties are experiencing substantial risk; the seven-day rolling average is greater than 30 cases per 100,000 people, testing positivity is greater than 20 percent and hospital capacity is at or above 100 percent.
Benewah County is the only county in North Idaho not in this category, though it is in the “orange” risk zone, meaning testing rates are high and significant outbreaks are occurring.
The Panhandle Health District assesses risk categories each week based on a variety of factors, including case rates and hospitalizations.
As of Wednesday, 54 people in North Idaho were hospitalized with COVID-19.
The PHD reported 970 new cases in the last seven days. There have been 7,000 total cases diagnosed since the start of the pandemic, meaning 1/7th of N. Idaho’s cases have come in the last week.
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