As Circumstances Surge, Pence Misleads on Coronavirus Pandemic

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As Circumstances Surge, Pence Misleads on Coronavirus Pandemic

If the rise in circumstances was solely attributable to extra testing, the speed of constructive check outcomes would lower or at the very least ma


If the rise in circumstances was solely attributable to extra testing, the speed of constructive check outcomes would lower or at the very least maintain regular. However whereas the variety of each day assessments carried out has steadily elevated from below 100,000 in March to 460,000 to 640,000 this week, the constructive charge had fallen from 10 to 20 p.c in early March to about four p.c in early June earlier than climbing again as much as 5 to 7 p.c this week.

Elevated testing in different international locations has not produced the uptick within the positivity charge seen in america. Russia, for instance, has ramped up its testing to about 300,000 a day in latest weeks from about 200,000 in Might. However its constructive charge has continued to hover at round three to five p.c.

In states with essentially the most extreme outbreaks, that pattern is starker nonetheless. Optimistic charges in Texas and Florida have elevated to 10 to 20 p.c this week from charges that have been typically beneath 10 p.c in Might — a actuality the Republican governors of each states have acknowledged.

“Clearly you’re seeing this, that is actual,” Gov. Rick DeSantis of Florida stated throughout a information convention on Tuesday. “Now they’re testing greater than they have been for certain, however they’re additionally testing constructive at a better charge than they have been earlier than. And so that might let you know there’s in all probability been an escalation and transmission over the past seven to 10 days.”

Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas acknowledged the identical level.

“Should you take a look at the expansion and even the decline within the quantity of people that have been testing constructive in addition to the positivity charge during the early a part of Might, Texas was transferring in a really productive place,” he stated on Monday. “Then across the time of Memorial Day, there was a rise, and that enhance has maintained for a number of weeks now, necessitating that subsequent steps be taken.”

What Was Stated

“Fatalities are declining all throughout the nation.”

That is deceptive. Whereas official dying counts are probably underreported, Mr. Pence is correct that nationwide, deaths are persevering with to lower, although fatalities are rising or holding regular in a number of states resembling Arizona, California, Florida, North Carolina and Texas.

Furthermore, public well being specialists have urged warning that this may proceed to be the case. Requested whether or not nonetheless declining fatalities have been due to youthful, more healthy individuals contracting the illness, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s high infectious illness professional, advised Congress this week that it was “too early to make that form of hyperlink.”

“Deaths all the time lag significantly behind circumstances,” he stated. “You would possibly do not forget that on the time that New York was of their worst scenario the place the deaths have been going up and but the circumstances have been beginning to go down, the deaths solely got here down a number of weeks later,.”

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