Washington County's COVID cases up 50.3%; Maryland cases holding steady

Mike Stucka USA TODAY NETWORK
·4 min read
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While the number of new reported cases of coronavirus is increasing in the Tri-State area, the number of deaths and hospitalizations associated with the virus that causes COVID-19 is not climbing as fast, according to a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data.

Maryland reported 11,161 new cases of coronavirus in the week ending Sunday, from 11,317 the week before of the virus that causes COVID-19. However, people not reporting the results of at-home tests creates a potential undercount of new cases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend contacting your doctor to report the results of your test.

Maryland ranked 38th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, the analysis shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States decreased 7.7% from the week before, with 862,778 cases reported. With 1.82% of the country's population, Maryland had 1.29% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 23 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

How many new cases did the Tri-State region report last week?

Washington County reported 245 cases and one death in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 163 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 37,141 cases and 593 deaths.

Franklin County, Pa., reported 329 cases and two deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 286 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 43,350 cases and 711 deaths.

Fulton County, Pa., reported 28 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 31 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 4,345 cases and 66 deaths.

Berkeley County, W.Va., reported 305 cases and one death in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 309 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 38,897 cases and 311 deaths.

Jefferson County, W.Va., reported 142 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 140 cases and two deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 15,817 cases and 137 deaths.

Morgan County, W.Va. reported 28 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 18 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 4,510 cases and 70 deaths.​

Within Maryland, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Montgomery County with 247 cases per 100,000 per week; Prince George's County with 221; and Howard County with 218. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Adding the most new cases overall were Montgomery County, with 2,591 cases; Prince George's County, with 2,011 cases; and Baltimore County, with 1,180. Weekly case counts rose in 10 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Washington, Baltimore City and Wicomico counties.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

​ Across Maryland, cases fell in 13 counties, with the best declines in Montgomery County, with 2,591 cases from 2,780 a week earlier; in Anne Arundel County, with 993 cases from 1,059; and in Howard County, with 711 cases from 770. ​

In Maryland, 35 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 42 people were reported dead.

A total of 1,167,922 people in Maryland have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 14,912 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 90,410,386 people have tested positive and 1,026,951 people have died.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

Maryland's COVID-19 hospital admissions falling

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, July 24. Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

  • Last week: 1,575

  • The week before that: 1,634

  • Four weeks ago: 1,624

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

  • Last week: 75,961

  • The week before that: 70,927

  • Four weeks ago: 61,308

Hospitals in 33 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 33 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 38 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Tri-State area sees COVID cases increase, but deaths relatively flat