vaccines

While all U.S. COVID-19 metrics remain at low-to-moderate levels as of mid-November, wastewater data show clear signs of this year’s winter wave getting started in the Northeast and Midwest. The latest data are from before Thanksgiving, and the increases are likely to continue as outbreaks from holiday travel and gatherings show up in our numbers.

After an uncertain few weeks, all available metrics now agree that the U.S. has passed the peak of its summer/early fall COVID-19 surge. But even as disease levels trend down, there is still a lot of SARS-CoV-2 going around, and levels are unlikely to drop too much further as we start getting into colder weather.…

The latest COVID-19 data offer conflicting information about whether or not we’ve passed the peak of this year’s summer/early fall surge. While test positivity and emergency department visit numbers suggest we have, at least in some parts of the country, wastewater surveillance data report widespread increases through early September.

COVID-19 is still spreading at high levels in the U.S., as the variant XFG collides with the start of a new school year. Some data sources suggest that this summer-into-early fall wave may have reached its peak in parts of the West and South. But indicators are mixed and disease levels are still far from…