TOPLINE
With the U.S. breaking records for new coronavirus cases on an almost daily basis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report on Tuesday suggesting that the infection rate in some parts of the country may be up to 13 times higher than previously reported.
A mobile Covid-19 testing site in Miami Beach, Florida.
KEY FACTS
The CDC analysis came from antibody tests in 10 different regions of the U.S., including some of those most affected by the virus, including New York City and Southern Florida.
Though the study showed that the number of cases is dramatically underreported, it also indicated that even the most hard hit areas are far from reaching the exposure rate of 60% needed for herd immunity, the point at which the virus would stop spreading in a particular region, according to the New York Times.
Anywhere from 20% - 40% of people who contract the virus are asymptomatic, but can still infect others.
Recent studies have shown that antibodies may not last long in people who had mild or asymptomatic cases of Covid-19 which might mean that the CDC’s. data is only reflective of people that were infected in the last few months.
key background
The director of the CDC. Dr. Robert Redfield has previously said that the number of Americans infected with the coronavirus is likely to be 10 times higher than the numbers being reported, and in a July 14 editorial published in the Journal of the American Medical Association pled with Americans to start wearing face masks saying “we are not defenseless against Covid-19. Cloth face masks are one of the most powerful weapons we have...all Americans have a responsibility to protect themselves, their families, and their communities.”
Key quote
Dr. Steffanie Strathdee, an infectious disease epidemiologist in the Department of Medicine at the University of California, San Diego was not surprised by the report. “This all goes back to testing. We are not near the ability to be able to test at the capacity we need, or to contact trace, and both of those are absolutely critical. It’s epidemiology 101. I find it hard to imagine how we are going to dig ourselves out of this unless we have a hard turn around. That’s going to mean leaders making decisions that will be uncomfortable, like a national mask mandate, and we aren't seeing our policy makers make those hard choices.”
tangent
Quest Diagnostics, the largest laboratory company in the U.S., warned that it would be impossible to keep up with the demand for Covid-19 tests once the flu season hits this fall.
further reading
Trump embraces face masks as U.S. breaks coronavirus case records (Washington Post)
Coronavirus Infections Much Higher Than Reported Cases in Parts of U.S., Study Shows (New York Times)
Study: 17.9% Of People With COVID-19 Coronavirus Had No Symptoms (Forbes)
Covid-19 Antibodies Fade Rapidly, Raising Risk of Lost Immunity (Bloomberg)
Quest Diagnostics Warns That Meeting Covid-19 Test Demand Will Be Impossible During Flu Season (Forbes)
