UPI reports that the number of cases of COVID-19 diagnosed has fallen below 35,000 per day:
Aug. 24 (UPI) — There were fewer than 35,000 new cases of COVID-19 in the United States on Sunday, according to data Monday from researchers at Johns Hopkins University — the lowest number in two months.
The university’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering showed about 34,500 cases, nationally. That’s the fewest number of new cases since 30,500 on June 22.
The U.S. average over the previous six days was 44,000. There were about 450 coronavirus deaths on Sunday, the lowest figure in a week.
I prefer using deaths due to COVID-19 per day over time and ICU or hospital bed utilization by COVID-19 patients as metrics. Just cases diagnosed is too subject to vagaries in reporting or testing to be particularly useful. It could be explained by hurricanes rather than by an actual decline in the number of new cases of the disease. Without epidemiological testing there’s no way to know.
Here in Illinois the number of cases diagnosed per day has been rising steadily as the volume of testing has increased while the number of deaths due to COVID-19 has been flat for six weeks at around 20 per day. ICU and hospital bed utilization by COVID-19 patients has been flat here for months. That’s why I keep whining about the policy response here. It’s not based on anything I can identify other than a futile wish to reduce the number of cases of COVID-19 to zero.
But the decline in cases diagnosed is good news nonetheless.
Just noting that it seems hard to believe any reduction in cases is due to public compliance on masks and distancing. Something else at work here.
As I’ve said before, while I think that masks and distancing can have some effect, I also think those measures are being tremendously oversold. I would add that they’re being stressed where they’re the least useful and ignored where they might be most useful.
“Something else at work here.”
Its called things running their natural and unstoppable course.
Well, I read the discussion Curious dropped, and what stands out at the moment is humidity. High as hell here. When winter comes and dry furnace air maybe infections pick up.
I’d like to think it’s run it’s course but 6 months is too short. This is probably just a pause.
‘That’s why I keep whining about the policy response here. It’s not based on anything I can identify other than a futile wish to reduce the number of cases of COVID-19 to zero.’
Most politicians are cowards. No one wants to get blamed for killing granny. Even if the drastic measures are killing more grannies than saving (which I believe they are). They also are very reluctant to own up to mistakes (unless it’s politically advantageous to do so). Think Cuomo with his statement that the nursing home COVID-19 death fiasco should not be investigated because everyone’s too politically biased to investigate it. Talk about a get-out-of-jail card.
Not to worry, in 70-some days the pandemic will be over.