For the second day in a row, Wisconsin counted zero deaths caused by the coronavirus, a hopeful sign as the state continues to ramp up its vaccine administering efforts into spring.
The last day the Wisconsin Department of Health Services did count deaths was on Saturday, when 17 people died from complications caused by COVID-19. Day after day, the weekly average number of deaths has decreased, with the average on Monday coming in also at 17.
It's a staggering decline compared to the number of people who died from the virus in the state earlier this winter and in fall, when the DHS tallied a record 128 deaths on Jan. 16, 120 deaths on Dec. 22 and 107 on Dec. 1.
The downward trend parallels Wisconsin's effort to vaccinate its population, after doses first became available to medical workers at the beginning of this year, and expanded to those in nursing homes and eventually to people 65 years and older.
As of Monday, 1.4 million doses have been earmarked by the federal government for Wisconsin, with 1.1 million administered to residents and just under 160,000 more on their way to the state, according to the latest numbers from the DHS.
The number of COVID-19 cases is also on the decline, with the DHS reporting a seven-day average of 612 on Monday, down from the recent high of just under 3,000 on Jan. 9 and the record number of cases of more than 6,500 on Nov. 18.
A total of 6,284 Wisconsin residents have died from the virus since the pandemic began.