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 North Dakota's positive test rate has averaged 30% over the past
seven days compared with 6% the prior week. The positivity rate has
risen to 26% in South Dakota, up from 17% the previous week,
according to the analysis using testing data from The COVID Tracking
Project.
Minnesota and Montana are averaging 7% of tests coming back
positive, but Montana's positivity rate rose on Sunday to 20%,
according to the analysis.
The World Health Organization considers rates above 5% concerning
because it suggests there are more cases in the community that have
not yet been uncovered.
Several states such as New York, Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine
have positive test rates of less than 1%.
At the same time that positive test rates are climbing in the
Midwest, cases and hospitalizations are setting records in those
states.
In the past week, seven states in the Midwest and western region
have reported record one-day rises in new infections - Minnesota,
Montana, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Wisconsin set records for new cases twice last week and is now
reporting more new infections each day than Florida. South Dakota
set records for new cases three times last week.
While a recent increase in testing might explain some of the
increase in cases, hospitalizations have also surged in the Midwest
and are not influenced by the number of tests performed.
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Wisconsin's hospitalizations set new records seven days in a row last week,
rising to 574 on Saturday from 362 a week ago. South Dakota's hospitalizations
have set records six of the last seven days, rising to 216 on Sunday from 170
seven days earlier. Wyoming and North Dakota also had record numbers of COVID-19
patients in their hospitals last week.
All Midwest states except Ohio reported more cases in the past four weeks as
compared with the prior four weeks, according to the Reuters analysis.
The United States is reporting 46,000 new infections on average each day,
compared with 40,000 a week ago and 35,000 two weeks ago. (Graphic: https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/countries-and-territories/united-states/)
Deaths have generally been trending downward in the United States for about six
weeks. Deaths are a lagging indicator and can take several weeks to rise after
an increase in cases.
(Graphic: COVID-19 global tracker, https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/)
(Graphic: Where coronavirus cases are rising and falling in the United States,
https://graphics.reuters.com/HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS/USA-TRENDS/dgkvlgkrkpb/index.html)
(Editing by Peter Cooney and Jacqueline Wong)
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