U.S. COVID update (June 16): Cases gradually increasing

COVID cases in the United States are continuing to gradually increase, with notable upticks in Puerto Rico and Florida, according to statistics collected by BNO News. At the same time, COVID levels remain relatively low compared to the winter months.

At least 65,816 new cases were reported between June 10 and June 16, up from 56,233 the week before. Those figures were collected from state health departments and, where necessary, estimated based on hospital admissions.

Actual case numbers are higher because many hospitals and states are no longer reporting detailed COVID data. Laboratory testing is also low because most people are using at-home tests which are not included in official statistics.

During the past week, cases increased in 23 out of 28 states with consistent but limited data. Notable increases were reported in Puerto Rico (+71%), Florida (+20%), New York (+13%) and Hawaii (+13%). No figures were available from Alabama.

It’s currently estimated that COVID cases are increasing in 34 states and territories, declining in 1 state or territory and stable or uncertain in 14 states and territories. Nationally, COVID test positivity is 5.4%, up from 4.6% last week.

Only 35% of hospitals in the U.S. submitted COVID data this week, down from 37% last week and 91% in early May. Those limited figures show that at least 1,707 Americans are currently hospitalized with COVID, up from 1,690 last week.

413 new COVID deaths were reported during the week, down from last week, when 507 deaths were reported. This marks the 222nd week in a row with more than 400 new COVID deaths in the U.S., or nearly 1.2 million during the same period.

So far this year, more than 3.4 million COVID cases have been reported in the U.S., causing 290,512 hospitalizations and 30,708 deaths, according to BNO’s COVID data tracker.

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