‘Darkest red’ for the coronavirus surge: Task force pleads with states to do more

This article was originally published by the Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit investigative news organization based in Washington, D.C.

The White House Coronavirus Task Force this week added a new color to its maps — “darkest red” — as it tried to convey the severity of the surge in coronavirus cases and deaths in weekly reports to governors.

“The fall surge is merging with the post-Thanksgiving surge to create a winter surge with the most rapid increase in cases; the widest spread, with more than 2,000 counties in COVID red zones; and the longest duration, now entering the 9th week, we have experienced,” the task force wrote. “Many Americans continue to gather indoors, creating private spreading events.”

For a second week in a row, 49 states and the District of Columbia were in the task force’s red zone for new cases, with more than 100 new cases per 100,000 residents in the previous week. Rhode Island, Ohio and North Dakota were at the top of the rankings. Hawaii was the only state not in the red zone.

Forty-eight states plus the District of Columbia — four more than in last week’s report — were also in the red zone for deaths, with more than two per 100,000 residents in the previous week. Iowa and the Dakotas were in the lead. Washington and Hawaii were the only states not in that red zone.

The task force again urged states to implement stricter measures to control the spread of the virus.

The Dec. 13 reports from the White House Coronavirus Task Force included a ranking of states based on their rates of new cases per population. (Screenshot of report)

“Mitigation efforts must increase, including key state and local policies,” the task force wrote. “Increase physical distancing through significant reduction in capacity or closure in public and private indoor spaces, including restaurants and bars.”

It also repeated its urgent advice from last week — that no one should gather maskless and indoors with others outside of their immediate household, that seniors should get groceries and medications delivered, that young people who gathered with others should assume they contracted the virus and isolate and get tested.

“Warn about any gathering during December holidays,” the task force told governors.

The task force urged states to consider carefully who should be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccines, saying that immunizing the elderly will save the most lives. The task force last week told governors that Americans need to remain vigilant because widespread vaccination will not happen until spring.

The White House does not make the reports public. It has said that’s because states should lead the pandemic response. The Center for Public Integrity is collecting and publishing them.https://embed.documentcloud.org/projects/red-zone-reports-50664/?embed=1

Public Integrity obtained Dec. 13 reports for three states — North Dakota, Tennessee and Washington — but spokespeople for 10 other states said on Thursday that they had not yet received their reports. The documents, dated Sundays, have for many weeks been sent out on Tuesdays.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the delay.

The states in the red zone for cases in this week’s report (more than 100 new cases per 100,000 residents in the week prior):

Rhode Island
Ohio
North Dakota
Indiana
Tennessee
Alaska
Idaho
Nevada
South Dakota
Kansas
Utah
Arizona
Minnesota
Delaware
Pennsylvania
New Mexico
Nebraska
California
Wyoming
Connecticut
Oklahoma
Kentucky
Colorado
Montana
Wisconsin
Alabama
Illinois
Massachusetts
Arkansas
West Virginia
Mississippi
New Hampshire
Missouri
Michigan
North Carolina
Iowa
New Jersey
South Carolina
Louisiana
New York
Georgia
Maryland
Virginia
Florida
Texas
Washington
District of Columbia
Oregon
Maine
Vermont

The states in the red zone for test positivity in this week’s report (more than 10 percent of tests in the state were positive in the week prior):

Nevada
Idaho
Oklahoma
Kansas
Nebraska
Missouri
Alabama
Utah
Arizona
Montana
Indiana
Virginia
Mississippi
Pennsylvania
Ohio
South Dakota
New Mexico
Iowa
New Hampshire
South Carolina
Texas
Kentucky
Michigan
Georgia
New Jersey
Illinois
Wyoming
Wisconsin
Arkansas
Minnesota
North Carolina
Colorado
West Virginia

The states in the red zone for deaths (more than two new deaths per 100,000 residents in the week prior):

Iowa
North Dakota
South Dakota
Illinois
Kansas
Arkansas
Wyoming
Rhode Island
Pennsylvania
Colorado
New Mexico
Michigan
Indiana
Nebraska
Minnesota
West Virginia
Montana
Wisconsin
Mississippi
Nevada
Idaho
Tennessee
Connecticut
Missouri
Alabama
Massachusetts
Arizona
Louisiana
Ohio
New Jersey
Texas
Maryland
Oklahoma
Florida
Oregon
Utah
Georgia
Kentucky
California
New Hampshire
North Carolina
New York
Delaware
Vermont
Virginia
South Carolina
Maine
District of Columbia
Alaska

The states in the red zone for COVID-19 hospital admissions (more than 15 new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100 beds in the week prior):

Arizona
Maryland
Arkansas
Kentucky
New Mexico
Pennsylvania
Oklahoma
District of Columbia
Nevada
Ohio
Missouri
Wisconsin
California
Illinois
Georgia
Indiana
New Jersey
Colorado
Delaware
Kansas
Alabama
Michigan
Montana
North Carolina
Wyoming
Virginia
Connecticut
Minnesota
Tennessee
Texas
South Carolina
Oregon
West Virginia
Nebraska
South Dakota
New Hampshire
North Dakota
New York

See the original story from the Center for Public Integrity here

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