COVID-19 Cases Rising in All 50 States
Daily Coronavirus cases continue to rise in nearly every state across the country. In an interview between CNBC and Dr. Michael Osterholm, a member of Joe Biden’s Covid advisory board, Dr. Osterholm compares the upcoming season to a “dark winter.” Dr. Olsterholm believes that the United States needs to do more to reduce transmission, and the next three to four months will prove to be the “darkest of the pandemic.”
The New York Times reports that 11.8 Million cases were reported in the last seven days, and 187,428 were reported on November 19th alone. The spike in numbers is leading to lockdowns across the country, warnings of over-run hospitals, and potential PPE shortages. The numbers are expected to rise in the upcoming Holiday season.
Dr. Holstrom stated that we are now at “130,000 new cases a day when at one point we were talking about 23,000 to 25,000 a day just a week ago. He now says, “this number will continue to increase substantially. “We have not even come close to the peak.”
Dr. Holmstrom compares the two upcoming Covid-19 vaccines as reaching the “promised land,” but they are still months away and even further away for the general public. He urged the public to “dig in one more time and help us.” States are now encouraging their citizens to hunker down, continue wearing masks, and limit their gatherings for fear of accelerating the number of cases during the Thanksgiving holiday.
Thirty-seven states now mandate face mask coverings in public, with New Hampshire issuing an order on November 19th. Pandemic Relief Supply (PRS) offers medical-grade, KN95 masks to the public and EPA N-listed wipes to help frontline workers. PRS has delivered more than 75,000,000 products and reported to have protected more than 12,600,000 people. An outstanding feat in the PPE industry.
States Moving to “Level Red” and Stay-at-Home Orders
Some states are even moving to “Level Red” on their Covid-19 state dial. States vary on their regulations and type of Covid-19 dial, but Colorado and many others utilize a color-scale. “Level Red” used to be the highest level on the state dial, meaning severe risk, but as Colorado’s counties are moving to “Level Red,” they have implemented the “Purple Level,” meaning extreme risk.
“Level Red” consists of–
● A stay-at-home order
● Gathering size limited to zero
● P-12 Schools: hybrid or remote suggested
● Higher Education: remote suggested
● Restaurants: In-door dining closed–take-out open.
● Offices: 10%, Remote work is strongly suggested
● Retail: 50% with increased roadside pick-up and delivery.
Almost all States are returning to stay-at-home orders , excluding North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, and Arkansas. Wyoming, Utah, and Oklahoma have partial lockdown orders. Some of these States are issuing curfews, limiting personal gatherings, and implementing criminal charges as repercussions to those who do not follow guidelines. You can check what legislation is active in your state through the National Conference of State Legislature Database .
The states who choose not to participate in the stay-at-home order are now reporting the highest number for daily new Covid-19 cases. According to the CDC and PRS ’s analysis of the data, North Dakota reports a high of 176,900 new cases a day, with South Dakota as a close second with 146,200 new cases a day. Wyoming, Nebraska, and Iowa are not far behind.
A New Challenge
In the Spring, the federal government allocated scarce resources to severe risk areas in the country. PPE equipment, health care workers, and ventilators were sent to New York, Florida, and Texas. The virus is moving into smaller communities and areas of the country that were barely hit before. It will prove difficult for these rural areas to handle the upcoming surge in cases.
The medical personnel in these communities have yet to experience life in a Covid-19 hotspot. There will be an exhaustion of resources, including healthcare workers. Before, hospitals and hotspot areas were able to recruit idle healthcare workers, many from smaller communities. But with the virus now reaching everywhere across the country, there may not be enough medical workers to deploy, said Dr. Lewis Kaplan , president of the Society of Critical Care Medicine and a surgeon at the University of Pennsylvania hospital.
“While manufacturing processes can be augmented to augment materials, no such process can generate more staff,” stated Dr. Kaplan. “You are a precious and vital resource.” “And we will all need to support one another through this challenging winter.”
