COVID Map Shows 4 States With Higher Positive Cases – Newsweek

Four U.S. states are recording the highest percentage of positive coronavirus tests, according to the latest map from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The central states of Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa and Missouri have all been recorded as having a 17.2 percent positivity rate in the week ending December 9. This is up from a test positivity rate of 16.7 percent over the previous two weeks.

COVID-19 cases, while no way near the highs recorded during the peaks of the pandemic across 2020 and 2021, were expected to increase during the winter months as colder temperatures set in, according to health experts. One study from 2020 said that the COVID-19 virus could remain active for longer in cold, dry conditions.

A CDC spokesperson previously told Newsweek that fall marks the "typical start of the respiratory virus season" and said hospitalization rates "could increase" heading into the winter months. Newsweek has contacted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for comment via email.

Western and southern states are faring better than their counterparts elsewhere in the country, with Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico all recording drops in positive coronavirus tests ranging from 0.2 percent to 2.4 percent. Slight increases have been recorded in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana, with the uptick recorded as 0.5 percent in these states.

Of the four states with the biggest uptick in cases, Kansas is recording the biggest increase in hospitalizations, with a 29.6 percent swell on the previous week. The CDC data found that 276 people have been taken to hospital with the virus in the week leading up to December 9.

Higher cases are being reported across the Midwest and Northeastern states. Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado have all recorded a positive rate case of 10.4 percent, a decrease of 1.2 percent compared to the previous week.

However, in Wyoming, hospitalizations from COVID-19 have increased by 36.2 percent, the highest rate in the country. In the week leading up to December 9, 64 cases of coronavirus have been admitted for hospital treatment, CDC data shows.

Hospitalizations are also high in Kansas, where an increase of 29.6 percent has been reported, as well and Oklahoma and Arkansas, which have seen cases needing inpatient treatment jump by 29.6 percent and 27.6 percent respectively.

New Mexico has seen the biggest decrease in hospitalisations across all 50 states, down by 28 percent on the previous week. Neighboring Arizona is also faring better than most, with hospital admissions down by 16.6 percent.

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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COVID Map Shows 4 States With Higher Positive Cases - Newsweek