US Averaged 1000+ Deaths a Day for Sixteen Days Straight
Testing Has Dropped 12% Nationwide
Texas’ Test Positivity Rate Rising; Drop in Testing Five Times Drop in Cases
Deaths Remain High Following Summer Surge
The United States Has Averaged More Than 1000 Deaths A Day For Sixteen Straight Days.
- “As a result of all those cases, deaths from the virus have remained high. The seven-day average of daily coronavirus deaths was just over 1,000 on Tuesday, the 16th consecutive day the US averaged over 1,000 deaths per day.” [CNN, 8/12/20]
On August 11, Florida And Georgia Reported Their Highest Single-Day Death Tolls Since The Start Of The Pandemic.
- “A record 137 people have died from the coronavirus in Georgia on Tuesday, surpassing the state’s record from last week, according to the Georgia Health Department… Georgia is one of several states in the South that saw spikes in daily deaths on Tuesday, including Florida which had a record 276 deaths. Alabama and Tennessee recorded their second-highest daily death tolls at 50 and 38, respectively. By the numbers: Fatalities from COVID-19 have risen in Georgia after the state experienced a surge of infections in July.” [Axios, 8/11/20]
COVID-19 Deaths In Florida Prisons Have Increased By 52 Percent In About Two Weeks, While Infections Among Inmates Increased By 109 Percent.
- “The number of Covid-19 related deaths in Florida prisons has increased by 52% in 15 days, according to data released by the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC). On July 27, 46 inmates had died in Florida prisons from Covid-19 related complications. That number jumped to 70 on August 11. During that same time period the number of cases in inmates went from 6,217 to 12,988, a 109% increase.” [CNN, 8/12/20]
Drops in Cases Muddied By Plummet In Test Capacity — Especially in States Recovering From Midsummer Spikes
The Seven-Day Moving Average Of Tests Per 1,000 People Is Down In Sixteen States Compared To One Week Ago.
- “In 16 states, the seven-day moving average of tests per 1,000 people was down from a week ago, according to Johns Hopkins.” [Wall Street Journal, 8/12/20]
Coronavirus Testing Nationwide Has Dropped 12 Percent Since July 28.
- “Testing shortages in key states and other gaps in Covid-19 data call into question the accuracy of those numbers and whether the outbreak in the U.S. is really improving or whether cases are simply going undiagnosed, epidemiologists say. The country recorded an average of 52,875 new cases every day over the last seven days, down 19% from an average of 65,285 new cases per day on July 28… However, Covid-19 testing has declined as well, falling from a seven-day average of about 814,000 tests per day two weeks ago to about 716,000, a 12% decline, over the same two-week period… The decline in testing is particularly acute in some of the hardest hit states with the worst outbreaks, which further skews the overall case numbers across the U.S.” [CNBC, 8/12/20]
While Cases In Texas Have Dropped By 10 Percent Over Two Weeks, Testing Has Dropped By 53 Percent In The Same Time Frame.
- “In Texas, for instance, new cases have fallen by 10% to an average of 7,381 a day from 8,203 two weeks ago, based on a seven-day moving average. Testing, however, is down by 53% over the same time frame. Meanwhile, the percent of positive tests has doubled over the last two weeks to about 24%.” [CNBC, 8/12/20]
As Testing In Texas Has Plummeted, Test Positivity Rates Have Climbed To 20 Percent, Up From 14 Percent Two Weeks Earlier.
- “The percentage of tests yielding positive results has climbed, up to 20% on average in the week ending Aug. 8. Two weeks earlier, the average positivity rate was around 14%. On Saturday, the state set a record for its positivity rate, with more than half of that day’s roughly 14,000 viral tests indicating an infection. Taken together, the low number of tests and the large percentage of positive results suggest inadequacies in the state’s public health surveillance effort at a time when school reopenings are certain to increase viral spread, health experts said.” [Texas Tribune, 8/10/20]