Local hospitalizations decrease

The number of locally hospitalized COVID-19 patients has dropped significantly over the past several weeks.

Northern Louisiana Medical Center on Thursday reported only five COVID hospitalizations, Marketing Director Tami Davis said. That’s down from 16 on Aug. 22.

NLMC has seen a decline in COVID patients over the last few days, Davis said.

The local decrease mirrors that of the 12-parish state public health region that includes Lincoln Parish. As of noon Thursday, the Louisiana Department of Health reported 148 COVID hospitalizations regionwide, down from a high of 220 on Aug. 19.

Yet even with the decreases in hospitalizations, confirmed cases of COVID-19 continue to climb. Lincoln Parish recorded 10 new cases from Wednesday to Thursday, the LDH report showed.

That’s almost one-third of the new cases reported regionwide. The region is Caldwell, East Carroll, Franklin, Jackson, Lincoln, Madison, Morehouse, Ouachita, Richland, Tensas, Union, and West Carroll parishes.