Has the rate of new coronavirus cases in Arlington plateaued? Or just paused its upwards trajectory?
It’s unclear, but for the past five days the trailing seven-day average of new daily cases has remained within a tight range, between 30 and 33.
That’s well above the average daily case rate for the first five days in October — in the low teens — but below the county’s spring epidemic, which peaked around 45 cases per day in May.
Arlington Public Schools officials this week cited the rise in cases as a key reason for delaying the start of in-person classes for most students until 2021.
Arlington’s test positivity rate, meanwhile, reached 5% two days ago, according to Virginia Dept. of Health Data, the highest point since Sept. 1. Today it stands at 4.8%. One month ago it was 3.2%.
Arlington’s rate of new COVID-related hospitalizations remains relatively low, with two reported over the past two days. The last local coronavirus death was reported on Oct. 24.
Nationally, the picture is more concerning.
“The U.S. has reached another grim coronavirus milestone, surpassing 100,000 new confirmed cases in a single day for the first time since the pandemic reached the country more than nine months ago,” NPR reported today. “From the Dakotas to Ohio, communities have seen a spike in cases and record hospitalizations in recent days, according to The COVID Tracking Project. Tennessee, Oklahoma and West Virginia have also broken hospitalization records.”