September 6, 2020 - Death Threats vs Virus Researchers
Death Threats vs Virus Researchers
September 6, 2020
The data is a bit better today, which is a welcome relief. There were only 511 cases (incl. 23 probables), lowering the daily average over the last week to 1,011. Reported tests rose by 6,312, increasing the daily average to 4,578 over the same period. Our 7-day positivity rate dropped to 20.49%, which places us in the top 2 (with South Dakota) in that category.
Hospitalizations ticked up from 818 to 841 but there were 98 reporting hospitals, compared to only 91 yesterday. We should wait until next week to draw any judgments about the trend in hospitalizations.
I will keep my report short on this Sunday of Labor Day weekend, but I do want to mention one news report that caught my eye. Today, the University of Washington in Seattle emailed 500 of its researchers telling them to be wary of suspicious packages because the FBI is aware that virus researchers on the East Coast have been targeted with death threats. Research at UW includes 16 clinical studies related to the virus as well as a forecasting model that received criticism from President Trump after predicting over 400,000 COVID-related deaths in the U.S. by the end of the year. Public health authorities have faced harassment and threats during this pandemic but these are the first known threats directed toward researchers. This has to be a new low.
Have a relaxing and safe Labor Day Weekend. The totals:
8/24 - 1,650
8/25 - 532
8/26 - 2,012
8/27 - 1,769
8/28 - 1,162
8/29 - 1,704
8/30 - 1,346
8/31 - 823
9/1 - 1,558
9/2 - 623
9/3 - 1,046
9/4 - 1,108
9/5 - 1,410
9/6 - 511
Only Jefferson Co. (104) had more than 100 cases and 48 out of the State’s 67 counties saw their 14-day positivity rates decline.