In a joint statement by doctors at UNMC and Nebraska Medicine, the state is entering "a dangerous period" when it comes to COVID, with daily counts equal to May peak and "rapidly rising."

"To absorb the increasing load of patients, Nebraska is relying on hospitals that are currently more than 85% full, which is a very different scenario than in April and May, when hospitals were 50% full."

"It is a potential perfect storm."

Dr. John Lowe of the UNMC compares mitigation to playing Jenga.

"As the structure weakens, our case counts accelerate. Now, some communities are considering rolling back the use of face masks. Remove that block and the entire structure may collapse."

Dr. James Lawler, who has been monitoring daily case counts, positivity rates, etc., says "we need to do more to restrict those opportunities that allow for the virus to spread."

Dr. Mark Rupp says the mask mandate for Omaha should not be rescinded; rather he says a mask mandate should be extended for the entire state.

Hospital length of stays continue to vary, but once patients get to the ICU, they end up on a ventilator for 3-5 weeks. Like medical professionals have seen around the country, the fatality rate when Nebraska patients get to ventilators is 50%.

One doctor (I didn't catch his name), says: "The myth that this affects elderly people or really frail people is exactly that: a myth."

ICU beds in Omaha area are 85% full right now.

Rupp says there are auxiliary plans to create capacity by curtailing elective surgeries, decreasing patients to ambulatory clinics, and building shelters on the grounds of the hospital to triage patients.

Rupp says there are ways to disrupt transmission of the virus without crashing the economy.

Avoid close confined settings
Wear a mask
Wash hands

"We need to be careful and cognizant of these things and do the right things for each other," he says.

Rupp says notion COVID is a "hoax" "could not be further from the truth."

"It's quite evident that this is very impactful and we need to take it seriously. The data speaks for itself. The number of cases rising, the hospitalizations rising, nothing could be more plain."

Rate of transmission differs from community to community, Rupp says, but data shows COVID is penetrating rural communities throughout the state.

Only way to stop it is doing preventative measures, he adds.

Dr. Angela Hewlett says "a vast majority" of patients who come into the hospital with COVID say they were in group settings without social distancing or mask use.

Or: "I have no idea how I got this virus," which indicates community spread, she says.

Dr. Jana Broadhurst says new testing tech have begun to diffuse across the country "will certainly help us expand our access to testing statewide."

Dr. Lawler says wearing masks, social distancing, avoiding confined spaces and crowds "dramatically reduce your risk of contracting COVID19 personally, or causing large outbreaks or clusters."

Clusters are what's driving the increased case counts, he says.

Lawler says timing is everything when it comes to testing.

"All infectious diseases have an incubation period...that incubation period in COVID can be up to 14 days, so that idea of 14 days of quarantine is still very important."

Early tests might not catch virus.

Lawler says new tests coming online aren't as sensitive as the PCR tests done in a lab.

He specifically mentions antigen testing (what the Huskers are using) as not being sensitive. They need to be administered by trained pros who know what they are doing.

And that's all, folks.

Happy Monday!