'An effective public health response depends on high quality, real time data.'
Dozens of states have opted to scale back on regular COVID-19 data reporting.Although officials have been warning for weeks of an impending coronavirus resurgence across the country, health experts say it is impossible to know exactly how widespread the nation’s latest resurgence may actually be, given the declining availability of COVID-19 data.
The significant decrease in data reporting and the nationwide decline in public testing have left health experts concerned that officials could be missing viral surges and in the dark about true positivity rates in the country, given the lack of information. Dozens of states have also moved to shutter public testing sites, as at-home COVID-19 tests have become more accessible."These are uncharted waters for us with this virus," Dr. Anthony Fauci told Bloomberg in an interview last week, reiterating that it is impossible to predict how COVID-19 will play out in the months to come.
Earlier this year, the Department of Health and Human Services ended the requirement for hospitals to report several key COVID-19 metrics, including a daily total of the number of COVID-19 deaths, the number of emergency department overflow and ventilated patients, and information on critical staffing shortages.
And last week, one state -- New Hampshire -- quietly shifted the way it counts COVID-19 related hospitalizations to only include certain severely ill patients in its tally. "One of the most important metrics has been the total number of people hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19, used by state leadership, hospitals and public health to monitor severity of illness and the prevalence of COVID-19 in New Hampshire," Steve Ahnen, the president of the New Hampshire Hospital Association, told ABC News.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
COVID.gov/tests - Free at-home COVID-19 testsEvery home in the U.S. is eligible to order two sets of four free at-home, rapid COVID19 tests. If you have already ordered your first set, order a second today at
Read more »
Covid-19: Three Covid-related deaths and 770 casesThe total number of deaths linked to Covid-19 in NI since the start of the pandemic is 3,372.
Read more »
COVID-19, overdoses pushed US to highest death total everFederal data confirms that 2021 was the deadliest year in U.S. history.
Read more »
Lack of Testing May Hide Increase in U.S. COVID-19 CasesIncomplete data and a lack of testing could be masking a rise in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. as the focus on daily infection counts fades, NBC News reports.
Read more »
COVID-19, overdoses pushed US to highest death total everCDC data indicates that more than 373,000 Americans died from all causes in January 2021, a 108,942 increase from January 2020.
Read more »
Mandryk: Government, all of us must remain vigilant while COVID-19 remainsGovernment needs to de\u002Dstigmatize COVID\u002D19, rather than downplaying the severity of this fifth wave as it\u0027s been doing for two months now.
Read more »