Data on US COVID-19 activity continue to reflect low but increasing levels of illness, with activity increasing in most parts of the country, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today in its latest update.
The agency said the epidemic trend for the disease is growing in 16 states and likely growing in 14 others, plus in Washington, DC.
Over the past week, test positivity for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, rose from 10.2% to 11.2%, with levels as high as 17.9% in the south-central part of the country (region 6), followed by levels in the 11.3% to 14.3% range in the West and 11.6% in the Southeast.
ED visits, hospitalizations up a bit
Emergency department (ED) visits for COVID, still infrequent, rose from 1.3% to 1.5%. Levels are highest in the South, Southeast, and West. The CDC said ED visits are increasing for all age-groups and are highest in young children.
Hospitalization rates have steadily increased since July, rising from 1.3 to 1.7 per 100,000 population in the past week. The percentage of deaths from COVID remains low, at 0.5% of all US deaths, with no change from the previous week.Â
Nationally, the wastewater viral activity level for COVID-19 is currently moderate.
SARS-CoV-2 detections in wastewater are “very high” in Alabama, Hawaii, Louisiana, Nebraska, Nevada, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, and Washington, DC. They are high in 11 states. “Nationally, the wastewater viral activity level for COVID-19 is currently moderate,” the CDC said.
In comparison, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) wastewater levels are listed as very low nationwide. ED visits for those two diseases are also listed as very low, but they are increasing for flu.
