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Coronavirus in the DMV: October 4

The coronavirus impact on the DMV continues. Here are the updates for October 4.

WASHINGTON — The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) remains present around the country, as well as here in the DMV. Things like masks and social distancing are the most important to help combat the spread of the virus.

This blog details the latest updates on the coronavirus in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Check-in each day for what’s new, where each part of the DMV is at in its phased reopening plan and what direction the coronavirus trend is headed.

THIS STORY IS NO LONGER BEING UPDATED. CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST.

Have a question? Text it to us at 202-895-5599.

Updates on coronavirus cases come from health departments between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. every day.

Tracking the Coronavirus

  • President Donald Trump's medical team says he's doing well following his coronavirus diagnosis Here's the latest
  •  Senate Republicans have canceled legislative work until Oct. 19 due to coronavirus cases. What to know.
  • D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser's administration said it will be up to the White House Physician's Office to trace the people who may have been exposed to the president in D.C., and to offer them advice on what to do.
  • D.C. health officials reported 50 coronavirus cases Saturday. That brings D.C.'s average number of cases per day to 36, down from an average of 50 per day two weeks ago.
  • D.C. reported 0 new deaths from the coronavirus Saturday.
  • Maryland testing positivity rate is up slightly to 2.98% Saturday.
  • Maryland is now averaging 549 coronavirus cases a day.
  • Virginia health officials reported 1,116 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday. The highest single-day figure since September 17.
  • Virginia is now averaging 770 cases of coronavirus a day, down 20% from two weeks ago.

Reopening the DMV

The latest in reopening news:

  • D.C. announced a pilot that will allow a limited number of venues to host live entertainment. Here are the details.
  • Maryland has entered the third and final stage of its reopening plan, with all businesses able to reopen. Details on what Phase 3 looks like here.
  • Montgomery County has adjusted some of its Phase 2 guidelines. More here
  • Prince George's County, Maryland, remains in Phase 2, but released additional reopenings. Here's a look.
  • Metro returns to a normal schedule with masks and social distancing still required. Here's the latest.

Previous Updates

October 2:

  • President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for coronavirus. Here's the latest
  • D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser's administration said it will be up to the White House Physician's Office to trace the people who may have been exposed to the president in D.C., and to offer them advice on what to do.
  • D.C. reported 65 cases of the coronavirus Friday, doubling the 32 cases reported on Thursday.
  • Despite those new cases, D.C.'s average number of cases remains at 37 per day, which is still down 28% from where it was two weeks ago.
  • Maryland reported one additional death on Friday, following Thursday's report of no deaths.
  • Maryland is now averaging 551 cases of the coronavirus a day. An 11% decrease from two weeks ago, when the state was averaging 619 cases.
  • Virginia's death backlog seems to be resolved. The commonwealth average number of deaths remains at 16 as of Friday.
  • Virginia is now averaging 750 cases of coronavirus a day, down 26% from two weeks ago.

October 1: 

  • Maryland is reporting no new deaths for the first time since March 28
  • D.C. is now averaging 36 cases of the coronavirus a day. Two weeks ago it was averaging 54 cases
  • Virginia is now averaging 16 deaths from the coronavirus a day.
  • Indoor visitation can begin immediately at Maryland nursing homes that are not seeing a current coronavirus outbreak and have not had any new cases of the virus in the past two weeks

September 30: 

  • D.C. has reported 26 cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, bringing the District's average number of cases per day to 39. That's the lowest average number of cases in D.C. since July.
  • Maryland is now averaging 489 cases per day. Two weeks ago, the state was averaging 616 cases per day. That's a 21% decrease.
  • Virginia's coronavirus case average is down 20% from where it was two weeks ago.

September 29:

  • DC is now averaging 39 coronavirus cases a day, down slightly from 42 cases two weeks ago
  • Wards 4 and 5 are reporting the most cases in the District as of Tuesday
  • Health officials in DC have reportedly conducted more than 386,000 coronavirus tests
  • Maryland's coronavirus average is down 16% from where it was two weeks ago.
  • Health officials say 1,485,999 Marylanders have tested negative for coronavirus as of Tuesday
  • Virginia reported an additional 923 coronavirus cases Tuesday 
  • Despite the increase in new coronavirus cases, Virginia's average number of cases is down to 786 cases a day. Two weeks ago, the commonwealth was averaging 1015 case. That's a 23% decrease.

September 28:

  • D.C. is now averaging 42 coronavirus cases a day. Down slightly from two weeks ago.
  • On Sunday the District announced 35 additional cases and zero new deaths. That's the lowest number of new cases reported in five days.
  • Maryland has also seen a decline in average cases. Maryland averaged 463 cases per day as of Sunday, a 19% decrease from two weeks ago.
  • Maryland health officials reported 10 new deaths Sunday, it's highest number since September 15.
  • Maryland health officials have conducted more than 30,000 coronavirus tests in the last 24 hours, brining the state's total testing volume to 2.5 million.
  • As of Sunday, Virginia reported an average of 804 cases per day, a 19% drop from two weeks ago.
  • The commonwealth appears to still be dealing with a reporting backlog of deaths.
  • Virginia's 7-day average positivity rate is 4.8%

September 27:

  • D.C. is now averaging 0 deaths from the coronavirus a day.
  • Virginia is now averaging 779 cases of the coronavirus a day. Two weeks ago it was averaging 1000 cases.  
  • Some D.C. students will be allowed to do in-person learning as early as this week throughout October to receive additional support during their virtual learning.

September 26:

  • D.C.'s coronavirus case average has plateaued, averaging the same number of cases Saturday as two weeks ago
  • As of Saturday, Maryland is averaging 461 new cases of coronavirus a day, an 18% decrease from two weeks ago
  • Virginia is now averaging 821 cases of coronavirus a day. Two weeks ago the commonwealth was averaging over 1,000 cases.
  • Virginia health officials reported 8 coronavirus deaths Saturday, a number much closer to its average.

September 25:

  • Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and First Lady Pamela Northam have tested positive for coronavirus. Here's what we know. 
  • Virginia is still dealing with a back log in reported coronavirus deaths, but overall the average number of cases in the commonwealth is down 17% from where it was two weeks ago.
  • In Maryland, the average number of coronavirus cases is also down about 16%
  • Maryland is averaging 7 deaths from the coronavirus a day. As of Friday, it's been averaging single-digit deaths for the past 10 days.
  • Maryland health officials have conducted nearly 2.5 million coronavirus tests, including almost 30,000 in the last 24 hours.
  • D.C. is averaging 44 cases of coronavirus per day. It's been hovering around that number for the past two weeks.
  • On Friday, D.C. health officials reported 2 deaths from the coronavirus. Breaking its most recent streak of no new deaths at four days.

September 24:

  • Prince George's County is not comfortable with moving to Phase 3 of reopening. In the next 2-3 weeks, they will look to health officials to see if they can move forward.
  • Prince George's County did not have a significant spike in cases after Labor Day, officials said. They are hopeful they can relax restrictions if they can control the cases.
  • The Maryland Superintendent approved for all state schools to safely begin fall high school sports starting Oct. 27.
  • D.C. reported 0 deaths from the coronavirus for the third day in a row Thursday.
  • The District's average number of cases per day is up slightly over where it was two weeks ago. 
  • Maryland health officials reported a statewide record low positivity rate of 2.57% on Thursday.
  • The positivity rate in people under 35 also dipped below 3.5% for the first time

September 23:

  • D.C. is now averaging 50 new coronavirus cases a day. Two weeks ago, D.C. was averaging 44 cases. 
  • D.C. once again reported no new deaths as a result of the virus.
  • Maryland reported 682 new coronavirus cases on Saturday. The state is now averaging just over 600 new cases of the virus a day. A 3% decrease from two weeks ago. 
  • Virginia continues to deal with a backlog of reported deaths, adding 41 on Saturday. 
  • Virginia's daily coronavirus case average is down slightly from where it was two weeks ago.

September 19:

  • D.C.’s daily coronavirus average is up 8% from where it was two weeks ago – but since D.C. averages so few cases a day, that’s only a change of three cases. Since Labor Day, the city’s average has been consistently below where it was in August. It seems the holiday weekend did not cause a spike in new cases.
  • In Maryland there seems to be no evidence yet of a Labor Day-related coronavirus spike. On the Friday before the holiday weekend, the state was averaging 595 new cases of the virus a day. As of this Friday, Maryland was averaging 620 cases of the virus a day – just a 4% difference.
  • In Virginia, the average for daily coronavirus cases is actually down from where it was prior to Labor Day. On September 4, the commonwealth was averaging 1,026 new cases of the virus a day. As of Friday, it was averaging 1,008 cases. That’s a 2% decrease.
  • It’s still possible that some vacation destination spots along Virginia’s east coast, particularly areas like Virginia Beach, could see an uptick in holiday-related cases next week, as we are still within the 14-day period for symptoms to emerge.
  • Virginia has now added more than 200 new deaths from the coronavirus over the past four days. The glut of unreported cases seems to be lessening, however, as the commonwealth reported 29 new deaths on Friday – the same number it reported on September 2.

September 17:

  • After nearly two weeks of decline, D.C.’s coronavirus numbers have begun moving upward again. The city is now averaging 54 new cases of the virus a day That’s where it was at the end of August. It had hit a low of 40 cases a day on September 10.
  • Maryland’s coronavirus numbers have been on an upward trend since August 31, when the state was averaging 511 new cases a day. As of Thursday, it’s now averaging 634 cases a day – a nearly 25% increase.
  • The apparent jump in hospital beds in use by coronavirus patients in Maryland on Tuesday appears not to have been a sustained trend. After increasing by 30 in a single day earlier this week, that number has fallen back down to 347 total hospital beds in use by COVID-19 patients – the lowest number since March.
  • Virginia has added 177 new coronavirus-related deaths from its data backlog over the past three days. That’s as much as the previous 16 days combined.
  • Virginia’s average percent positivity for coronavirus tests has been headed in the right direction recently. Over the past 10 days it has dropped from 7.8% to 6.7%, which is close to its all-time low.

September 16:

  • In D.C., case and death numbers remain plateaued at around 50 and 0 per day, respectively. The District did report a new death from the coronavirus on Wednesday, breaking a five-day streak.
  • In Maryland, the state is now averaging 616 cases of the coronavirus a day. That's 12% more than it was two weeks ago. Deaths have dropped over that same time period from an average of 7 a day to 5 a day.
  • In Virginia, the commonwealth is now averaging 1,010 cases of the coronavirus a day. That's essentially flat from where it was two weeks ago. The commonwealth's death numbers remain funky due to an apparent data backlog.

September 15: 

  • As of Tuesday, D.C. had gone five consecutive days without a coronavirus-related death – tying the District’s previous record from mid-July.
  • The Maryland Department of Health reported 30 new COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the state on Tuesday, including 21 who were placed in acute care. That’s a nearly 10% increase from Monday’s hospitalization number.
  • Marylanders between the ages of 20-29 now represent the largest single chunk of COVID-19 cases in the state – overpassing those ages 30-39. As of Tuesday, the state health department reports that more than 21,000 Marylanders between 20-29 have contracted the coronavirus.
  • School-aged kids between 10 and 19 have also seen increasing numbers of coronavirus cases. Since August 1, that age group has seen a growth in cases of 68% -- the highest growth rate of any cohort in the state. As of Tuesday, more than 9,200 kids between the ages of 10-19 had contracted coronavirus in Maryland.
  • Marylanders under the age of 30 also now make up nearly 50% of daily cases in the state – a sharp rise from the early stages of the pandemic in April, when they represented just 13% of new cases, and a significant rise even from August 31, when they were roughly 40% of new cases.
  • Virginia reported 96 new deaths from the coronavirus on Tuesday – the result of what the state health department is calling an “existing data backlog.” This could help explain why Virginia’s deaths data has been so spiky – with large peaks followed immediately by low valleys – over the past several weeks.

What precautions should you take?

  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
  • Wash your hands often with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds.
  • Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol if soap and water are unavailable.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.

Check the status of the virus in your state with your state health department's websites by tapping below:

D.C. Coronavirus Surveillance Data

Virginia Department of Health

Maryland Department of Health

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