New tool identifies local virus risk levels

Ah New tools Makes it easier to identify the risk of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Spread at the county level of individual states.

Harvard Global Health Institute, Edmund J. Safra Center of Ethics at Harvard, and many other researchers and public health experts across the country work together to identify COVID-19 risk levels across the state and its counties. Launched a new data framework.

The identified regions fall into one of four risk level categories: red, orange, yellow, and green, depending on how high the daily increase in COVID-19 cases is. Region risk levels do not necessarily change daily, but are based on daily changes in data.

Regions labeled in green are “good containment” with less than one new COVID-19 case reported per 100,000 people daily. The areas labeled in yellow are experiencing “community breadth” with 1-9 new cases reported per 100,000 people daily. In areas labeled orange, “accelerated diffusion” has occurred, with 10 to 24 new cases reported per 100,000 people daily.

The researchers say that the regions labeled in red are at the “turning point,” reporting at least 25 new cases per 100,000 people each day.

Hawaii and Vermont are the only two states labeled with the green risk level. Most 33 of the states are labeled yellow and 13 are orange. Arizona, Florida, and Mississippi are the only three states labeled with a red risk level. Because of the huge surge in COVID-19 cases..

Further breakdown, far more countries are at higher risk than states. Most of these counties are concentrated in the southern states labeled red danger levels, although some counties are spread across the states of Washington, Iowa, South Dakota, and even Michigan.

Research initiatives have labeled the entire state of Michigan as yellow or “expanding the community”. Most Michigan counties are divided into yellow and green risk levels, with 45 and 35 counties, respectively.

July 1, 2020: Up to 64,132 cases of Michigan coronavirus (COVID-19), with 5,951 deaths currently

Both Oscoda and St. Joseph counties have an orange COVID-19 risk level. Studies show that Oceana County is the only red-labeled county in Michigan, reporting more than 47 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people per day.

Michigan also classifies the county at the COVID-19 risk level. MI Safe Start Map, Which indicates that most counties are at medium or low risk. State data assess the increase in COVID-19 cases per million in the region, whereas the new Harvard study assesses an increase in cases per 100,000.

Researchers collaborating with Harvard University on a new data framework have decided to use smaller numbers to more evenly measure case increases in COVID-19 across all counties and cities, regardless of population size. Wanted to use.

“This allows us to compare rural areas in northern New York State compared to New York City, comparing relative impacts and relative case loads.” Ellie Graeden of Talus Analytics and Georgetown University Global Health Science Center and Security Told NPR..

The county-focused data will help residents make informed decisions before moving to another part of the state, perhaps with the aim of reconsidering the counties they visit at higher risk levels. is.

The data is also intended to assist policy makers in responding to and trying to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks.

Each of the four risk levels is accompanied by recommended actions that help the community mitigate or control the spread of COVID-19. Extensive testing and contact tracking are recommended to be maintained in the green areas, and rigorous testing and contract tracking and even implementation of home orders are recommended in the yellow and orange areas. I will.

Red areas, or areas labeled with “turning points”, are highly recommended to implement at-home orders-researchers say are needed at the stage of their spread.

Regardless of risk level, researchers are encouraging all counties and states to continue to take steps to control the spread of COVID-19.

“Regional leaders need and deserve a unified approach to curbing COVID-19. The common indicator is that they do not react to uncontrolled community expansion, You will be able to anticipate the virus and overcome it.” Beth Cameron, Vice President, Global Biological Policy and Programs, Nuclear Threat Initiative And members COVID-Local.org team. “Without the full response of the government, U.S. leaders can better target interventions because measurable progress is communicated equally regularly across all states and territories. Without being able to deal with the virus confusion.

According to the researchers, this new framework aims to create a baseline of COVID-19 risk data that can be used by people and lawmakers across the country.

The group that launched the framework on Wednesday was Rockefeller Foundation, CovidActNow, Covid-Local, Talus Analytics, Google Research, Microsoft Research, Apple University, and More..

Click here for interactive local, state, and national data from collective groups...

The above map is so familiar that it was created with the help of Covid ActNow, which I launched earlier. Similar COVID-19 “warning system” It identifies the risk of virus spread in each state. Michigan has been categorized as one of three states that contain viruses. In mid-June, but stepped back and is now experiencing “controlled disease growth”.