Accuracy of U.S. coronavirus data thrown into question as decline in testing skews drop in new cases

[Mike 03]

CNBC
PUBLISHED WED, AUG 12 2020 3:36 PM EDT
Will Feuer
Nate Rattner

KEY POINTS

- The country recorded an average of 52,875 new cases every day over the last seven days, down 19% from 65,285 new cases per day on July 28.

- However, Covid-19 testing has declined as well, falling from an average of about 814,000 tests per day two weeks ago to about 716,000, a 12% decline, over the same two-week period.

- In Texas, new Covid-19 cases have fallen by 10% over the last two weeks, but testing is down by 53% over the same time.

For the first time in months, the daily growth of new coronavirus cases in the U.S. has steadily fallen over the past two weeks, giving some hope to U.S. officials who proclaimed there were "signs of progress" in Southern states that were hit particularly hard.

"No one's declaring victory," Adm. Brett Giroir, an assistant secretary at HHS, told reporters on a July 30 conference call. "We continue to see signs of progress across the Sun Belt and diffusely throughout the country."

But testing shortages in key states and other gaps in Covid-19 data call into question the accuracy of those numbers and whether the outbreak in the U.S. is really improving or whether cases are simply going undiagnosed, epidemiologists say.

Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/08/12/accuracy-of-us-coronavirus-data-thrown-into-question-as-decline-in-testing-skews-drop-in-new-cases.html

[struggle4progress]

1. US averages 1000+ CV deaths/day for 16 straight days

https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/12/health/us-coronavirus-wednesday/index.html

[onecaliberal]

2. If you just stop testing the virus will go away.

[SoonerPride]

3. "When you don't test you have no cases!"

"It is all so simple!"


and rigged.

[DBoon]

4. A decline isn't real until you see deaths drop.

It's harder to hide corpses than it is to stop testing

[tanyev]

10. We could have a drop in Covid deaths but a simultaneous sharp rise

in ‘unexplained’ deaths.

[intrepidity]

5. The deaths tell the real story

Surprisingly, testing for death is incredibly easy; no special swabs or PCR machines or reagents required. Also, no two-week wait for results.

[spinbaby]

6. Here's an article from a MONTH ago

About how Florida’s data is cooked:

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/coronavirus/fl-ne-positivity-rate-florida-paints-rosy-pandemic-picture-20200715-cpwwngaefzdnpitbs7buh7zsei-story.html

[Stallion]

7. Meanwhile Texas Positivity Rate Has Increased from 12.5% to 21% in Roughly Same Period

....not to mention unprecedented excess deaths in Texas

[Roland99]

8. People feeling like they don't need to go get tested?

As cases start to drop, people feel less uncertain and less likely then to go get a test?

Cases rise and people maybe feel more uncertain and go get a test?

[rurallib]

9. Thanks - I have been quite skeptical of the sudden and rather steep drop in cases

just as school openings are on the horizon. So - just as I thought - rig the data.

Beside not testing, can we rely on anything reported in red states especially in states like Florida, Texas and Arizona?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

11. Pig boy Trump can't handle the truth