COVID-19 Data Dispatch

Tag: May data

  • National numbers, May 9

    National numbers, May 9

    In the past week (May 1 through 6), the U.S. reported about 321,000 new cases, according to the CDC. This amounts to:

    • An average of 46,000 new cases each day
    • 98 total new cases for every 100,000 Americans
    • 13% fewer new cases than last week (April 24-30)
    Nationwide COVID-19 metrics as of May 7, sourcing data from the CDC and HHS. Posted on Twitter by Conor Kelly.

    Last week, America also saw:

    • 32,500 new COVID-19 patients admitted to hospitals (10 for every 100,000 people)
    • 4,600 new COVID-19 deaths (1.4 for every 100,000 people)
    • 59.6% of new cases in the country now B.1.1.7-caused (as of April 10)
    • An average of 2.0 million vaccinations per day (per Bloomberg)

    The rate of new cases continues to drop: this is the first time we’ve seen an average under 50,000 daily cases since early October, 2020. Nationally, fewer than one in one thousand Americans was diagnosed with COVID-19 last week. Still, even after a couple of weeks of declines, case rates in Michigan and other Northeastern and Midwestern states remain at a concerning level: over 100 new cases per 100,000 people. 

    Hospitalization and death numbers have remained fairly constant for the last month. Between 4,000 and 5,000 new COVID-19 patients are admitted to the hospital each day; as I discussed in this recent story for Science News, younger patients (under age 50) are making up a larger share of those hospitalized than this age group did in earlier periods of the pandemic.

    The demographic change is, of course, thanks to vaccination. While about 43% of American adults are now fully vaccinated, an impressive 71% of seniors (over age 65) are fully vaccinated—and 84% of seniors have received at least one dose, as of May 8. Still, we have many shots in arms to go before reaching President Biden’s new goal: one dose for at least 70% of Americans by July 4.

    A recent update to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor shows how vaccine supply/demand tension is playing out across the country. Some states in the South and West with lower vaccinated shares of their populations are also administering new first doses at lower rates. In Mississippi, for example, only 41% of the population has received a first dose and the state is administering new first doses at a daily rate of 136 per 100,000. Overall, the U.S. is administering 2 million doses per day, way down from last month’s 3+ million peak.

    This past Wednesday, the Biden administration announced its support of waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines. The announcement garnered a lot of enthusiasm in the public health community, especially as cases continue to surge in India, other parts of Asia, and South America. But a lot of negotiations remain until vaccine technology can actually be shared with the world; if you’re looking for a detailed rundown, I recommend this issue of Geneva Health Files, a newsletter run by my former CUNY classmate Priti Patnaik.

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  • National numbers, May 2

    National numbers, May 2

    In the past week (April 24 through 30), the U.S. reported about 368,000 new cases, according to the CDC. This amounts to:

    • An average of 53,000 new cases each day
    • 112 total new cases for every 100,000 Americans
    • 1 in 893 Americans getting diagnosed with COVID-19 in the past week
    • 16% fewer new cases than last week (April 17-23)
    Nationwide COVID-19 metrics as of April 30, sourcing data from the CDC and HHS. Posted on Twitter by Conor Kelly.

    Last week, America also saw:

    • 35,400 new COVID-19 patients admitted to hospitals (11 for every 100,000 people)
    • 4,400 new COVID-19 deaths (1.3 for every 100,000 people)
    • 59.2% of new cases in the country now B.1.1.7-caused (as of April 10)
    • An average of 2.55 million vaccinations per day (per Bloomberg)

    New cases are down for the second week in a row—good news after the 70,000-plus peak of mid-April. Still, 50,000-plus cases in a day is no good place to plateau, new hospital admissions remain over 5,000 a day, and vaccinations are slowing: the U.S. is now averaging about 2.6 million shots a day, down from 3.4 million a couple of weeks ago.

    As we discussed last week, the U.S. vaccination campaign has entered a phase in which supply is higher than demand. Even with Johnson & Johnson now back on the market, many of the people who were desperate to get their shots have already secured those doses, leaving public health experts and local leaders to figure out how to both lower access barriers and alleviate concerns in less vaccine-confident communities.

    The extra supply has enabled U.S. officials to say they can spare some doses that won’t be used here: 60 million AstraZeneca doses will go to India and other countries, after they undergo FDA review. Still, some experts are arguing that the U.S. could do far more by waiving patents for the COVID-19 vaccines—a move that Brazil’s senate just voted to make for its own country’s products on Friday. 

    There is one good piece of vaccine news this week, though: several states are closing their vaccine equity gaps, according to Bloomberg’s tracker. White vaccination rates are slowing more drastically than rates in minority populations, allowing those communities to catch up. “Since early February, Alabama, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi and North Carolina have narrowed their Black vaccination gaps most,” Bloomberg’s team reports.

    Meanwhile, the coronavirus variants just keep spreading. The CDC updated its variant proportions data this week, reporting that B.1.1.7 is now causing a clear majority of COVID-19 cases in the country (59%). Michigan, Minnesota, and Tennessee have B.1.1.7 proportions closer to 70%. B.1.1.7 also appears to be outcompeting the California variants (B.1.427/B.1.429) in parts of the West where those variants had previously dominated. Still, as we keep emphasizing, these data are several weeks old; this week’s CDC update includes figures as of April 10, and the true B.1.1.7 numbers are likely higher.

    Stay safe out there, readers, and help your communities get vaccinated.

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