States in the Central, North and Pacific regions continue to have the highest number of COVID-19 infections in the country despite an overall decline nationally, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ). ).
Each week, the CDC produces a map that tracks the positivity of the virus — the number of COVID-19 tests that come back positive, one of the most reliable signs of the disease’s impact on the network.
In the week ending Oct. 14, according to the most recent data released through the CDC, the number of COVID-19 infections nationwide averaged 9. 5%, down 0. 7% from last week.
The national positivity rate has been declining for weeks, suggesting infections are leveling off. But CDC experts have warned that cases may rise again during the winter, especially as other seasonal ailments like colds and flu are expected to affect the general population and weaken their immune systems. Systems.
While cases are down in New England states, which at the beginning of the month still had a positivity rate above 10%, other states are seeing infections rise.
Two weeks ago, the positivity rate in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming was 13. 8%, down 0. 6% from the week ending Oct. 14. They are now the most affected states in the country, with a constant 14. 4. with a penny.
It was followed by Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington with an 11% positivity rate, while Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas had a rate of 10. 5%.
Other states in the country with a positivity rate above 10 were New Jersey and New York, with a positivity rate of 10. 1. Last week, those two states remained the second-highest affected in the country with a positivity rate of 11. 9.
What’s even more positive is that the CDC is now reporting several states with a positivity rate below 5%, information that hasn’t appeared on the map for weeks or even months. These states were Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia, with a rate of 4. 8 percent.
Newsweek reached out to the CDC for comment via email on Monday, Oct. 23.
Amid a surge in COVID-19 infections late last summer, in the U. S. In the U. S. , as well as in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, the CDC recommends that all Americans rush to get COVID-19 vaccines and boosters to prevent significant spread. of the disease this fall and winter.
In September, the World Health Organization (WHO) also called on the population to control their vaccinations and the government to continue monitoring the disease, denouncing the lack of controls.
Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek journalist based in London, UK. It focuses on politics, global affairs, and U. S. housing. He extensively covered the ups and downs of the U. S. housing market. He provided insight into the ongoing war in Ukraine. . Giulia joined Newsweek in 2022 from CGTN Europe and in the past worked at the European Central Bank. He graduated from Nottingham Trent University. Languages: English, Italian, French.
Giulia can be reached by emailing g. carbonaro@newsweek. com.