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.
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
- The number of ventilators in use by COVID-19 patients in D.C. has dropped to a new low of just five as of Friday. At the virus’ peak in early May, there were 92 coronavirus patients in D.C. hospitals on ventilators.
- Maryland reported 819 new cases of the coronavirus on Friday – its highest single-day total in a month and more than 37% higher than its average over the past week.
- The Maryland Department of Health reports that more than 2 million tests have now been conducted in the state, including nearly 30,000 over the past 24 hours. Maryland has been averaging a percent positivity of less than 3.5% since mid-August.
- Virginia’s coronavirus trend has been on an upward arc for the past 10 days, and its seven-day average has now been above 1,000 cases for three days straight.
- Virginia’s testing percent positivity is on the rise again. Since August 22, when it was at an average of 6.5%, the metric has risen to 7.8%.
Reopening the DMV
The latest in reopening news:
- Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks announced that the county will remain in Phase 2, despite the rest of Maryland entering Phase 3 starting this Friday.
- Gov. Larry Hogan said Maryland will enter the third and final stage of its reopening plan on Friday, September 4, at 5 p.m., with all businesses able to reopen. Details on what Phase 3 looks like here.
- Montgomery County will not enter Phase 3, despite Gov. Hogan's announcement. Here's the latest.
- D.C. released its latest quarantine list. Find it here.
- Virginia has begun Phase 3 of reopening. More details about Phase III in Virginia here.
- Gov. Ralph Northam has promised stricter enforcement of mask and social distancing rules.
- Gov. Northam has tightened some coronavirus restrictions in the Hampton Roads area.
- D.C. is now in Phase II of reopening. It means restaurants and non-essential retail can open indoors at 50% capacity and gyms and yoga studios can reopen with restrictions. Full details on what Phase II means in D.C. here.
- Metro returns to normal schedule with masks and social distancing still required. Here's the latest.
Previous Updates
September 5:
- D.C.’s percent positivity rate has now been around 2.6% -- its all-time low – for 10 days (as of August 25, the most recent data for which data is available). The District has been averaging more than 4,000 new coronavirus tests a day over the past several weeks.
- The percentage of new coronavirus cases in Maryland coming from the under-30 population is on the rise again. As of Thursday, this demographic was now making up an average of 44% of new cases in the state over the past week. This is a function of under-30 cases mostly staying at the same rate over the past several weeks while the rest of the state has seen a decline in new cases.
- The coronavirus trend in both Montgomery and Prince George’s counties has been nearly flat for more than two weeks (Montgomery not down at all, Prince George’s down ~ 15%). Neither county will join the rest of Maryland in entering Phase 3 for the moment.
- Virginia is once again averaging more than 1,000 new cases of the coronavirus a day. The commonwealth’s seven-day average for daily cases dropped below the 1,000 mark on August 14 and had stayed below it for nearly three weeks – falling to 860 on August 21 before beginning to rise again.
September 3:
- More than 50,000 coronavirus tests have now been conducted in Ward 6 – far and away the ward with the most tests. Ward 5 ranks second with more than 38,000, and Ward 1 comes in third with 37,000.
- Maryland has maintained a percent positivity of 3.3% for its coronavirus tests for more than two consecutive weeks. The state has averaged more than 20,000 new tests a day since July 20.
- On Wednesday, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich said the county would not be joining the rest of the state in Phase 3 when the transition happens.
- Virginia has reported significantly above-average coronavirus deaths over the past two days. The commonwealth reported 32 deaths on Tuesday and 29 on Wednesday. It has been averaging 17 deaths a day over the past week.
- The number of COVID-19 patients on ventilators or in ICU beds in Virginia has remained mostly flat over the past week – averaging about 140 and 260, respectively – but hasn’t declined far from the commonwealth’s all-time peak.
September 1:
- D.C. has continued to see declining numbers of COVID-19 patients in its hospitals. As of Tuesday, DC Health reports only 71 hospital beds in the District are now being used by coronavirus patients. The District began August with 102 hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
- In Maryland’s D.C. metro counties, Prince George’s County continues to see its coronavirus trend decline, while Montgomery County has plateaued recently. As of Tuesday, Prince George’s County was averaging 97 new cases of the virus a day – down 17% from the week prior. Meanwhile, Montgomery County was averaging 67 new cases a day – the same number as a week earlier.
- Virginia’s coronavirus trend is moving upward again, and the commonwealth is averaging just under 1,000 cases a day once more. The last time Virginia’s seven-day average was above 1,000 was August 13. Since then, the average had declined to as low as 860 new cases a day, but has been rising again since August 21. As of Tuesday, Virginia is averaging 997 new cases a day.
- Deaths from the coronavirus also continue to rise again in Virginia. As of Tuesday, Virginia is averaging 17 new deaths a day from the virus. That’s more than twice what the commonwealth was seeing two weeks ago.
August 31:
- As of Monday, is averaging just 50 new cases of the coronavirus a day. That’s the city’s lowest average since July 10. However, D.C. has not been able to maintain the sustained downward trend it needs to move to Phase 3.
- As of Monday, Montgomery County has now reported more than 20,000 cases of the coronavirus. It joins Prince George’s County as one of only two Maryland counties to break that number.
- As of Sunday, the Maryland Department of Health reported there were only 358 hospital beds in use in the state for COVID-19 patients. That’s the lowest number since March.
- As of Monday, Virginia has reported more than 120,000 cases of the coronavirus.
- Virginia will end August having reported more than 30,000 new cases of the coronavirus during the month – the worst month yet for the commonwealth. Virginia reported 27,000 new cases in July, and just under 29,000 in May.
August 29:
- D.C. had appeared to be making progress on one of its Phase 3 metrics – the percent of new cases that come from quarantined contacts – but that number has backslid recently. Since reaching a high of 9% on August 18 it has fallen back down to 5.5% as of August 24, the most recent date available. The goal for that metric is 60%.
- Maryland reported 13 new deaths from the coronavirus on Friday. That’s the state’s highest single-day count in more than two weeks.
- In Maryland’s D.C. metro counties, both Montgomery and Prince George’s say they have now tested more than 20% of their populations for the coronavirus.
- Virginia’s average daily deaths from the coronavirus have doubled over the past two weeks – rising from an average of eight a day to 16 a day. The commonwealth has reported more than 20 deaths a day for four of the past seven days.
August 28:
- As of Thursday, DC Health now says more than a quarter of a million people have been tested in the District. Of those, more than 170,000 are D.C. residents.
- As of August 19 – the most recent date data is available – DC Health was reporting a new record-low percent positivity in the District of 2.5%. That’s well below the 5% goalpost set for the city to enter Phase 3.
- Maryland’s coronavirus trend, which has been on a pretty consistent downward trajectory for all of August, has plateaued over the past week. The state has averaged between 548-560 new coronavirus cases a day over that period.
- Virginia’s seven-day average for new coronavirus cases has been on the rise again for the past three days – ending a week-long downward streak. As of Thursday, the commonwealth is now averaging 957 new cases of the coronavirus a day.
August 26:
- The coronavirus trend in D.C. remains mostly flat. Daily new cases are, on average, down roughly 20% from where they were on July 31, but little of that progress has happened over the past week.
- Maryland’s D.C. metro counties of Montgomery and Prince George’s have seen their coronavirus trends flatten over the past week. Montgomery County has averaged 67 new cases a day over that period. Prince George’s County is now averaging 108 new cases a day.
- While the number of coronavirus cases in people under 30 has continued to decline – as of Monday, Maryland’s statewide average was down 41% from where it was on July 31 – that age group has continued to represent a consistent 40% of new cases in the state.
- Virginia has now reported more than 20 deaths a day from the coronavirus for three of the past four days. That hasn’t been true since July.
- While the percentage of new coronavirus cases among Black patients has largely stayed consistent in the commonwealth, over the past two weeks Latinos and particularly whites have seen their share of new coronavirus cases. White patients now account for 35-37% of all new cases in Virginia – up seven percentage points from July 31.
August 25:
- DC Health reports it has been able to contact trace 100% of cases for a month straight.
- Maryland reported 377 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday. That’s the state’s lowest daily number since July 6.
- Maryland’s coronavirus trend continues to decline as well. It has been on a downward trajectory for the entire month of August, and is now down 42% from where it was on July 31.
- Virginia’s seven-day average for deaths from the coronavirus has doubled over the past week, increasing from seven to 14. This could partially be because the commonwealth’s death reporting has been so spiky. Virginia has reported more than 20 deaths on two of the past three days.
- The number of COVID-19 patients in Virginia in ICU beds or on ventilators dipped by more than 10% over the past week, although both metrics are beginning to rise again.
August 24:
- In D.C., four wards have now reported more then 2,000 cases of the coronavirus: 4, 5, 7 and 8. Ward 4 continues to lead the city with 2,673 cases as of Monday.
- Maryland has continued its gradually declining trend in daily coronavirus cases. As of Monday, the state is now averaging 40% fewer cases each day than it was on July 31.
- Despite the second wave of cases in July, Maryland has not seen a corresponding second wave of deaths. The state has averaged 10 or fewer deaths a day since July 10.
- Virginia reported 24 new deaths from the coronavirus on Sunday. That’s its largest daily count in more than two weeks.
- Virginia’s declining case trend appears to be flattening out again. The commonwealth has average around 900 cases for the past week. Virginia’s seven-day average remains approximately 20% below where it was two weeks ago.
August 23:
- The percentage of new coronavirus cases linked to already-quarantined contacts has been slowly but steadily rising in D.C. As of Friday, that number is now 7.3%. The District still has a long way to go to reach its goal of 60%.
- Maryland reported a new record low percent positivity Thursday of 3.08%. The same day, the state reported the results of nearly 30,000 new coronavirus tests.
- Maryland has been on a declining trend for weeks, and is now averaging 575 new cases a day – its lowest seven-day average since July 14.
- As of Friday, more than 110,000 Virginians have now contracted the coronavirus. Ten thousand of those infections have happened in just the past two weeks.
- Virginia has reported above-average death numbers for the past four days. Sixty more Virginians have died from the coronavirus over that period.
August 22:
- DC health has now reported successfully contact tracing more than 90% of new coronavirus cases for 60 consecutive days.
- In the D.C. metro area, as of Thursday, Prince George’s County has now reported more than 25,000 cases of the coronavirus. Montgomery County has the second-highest number of cases in the state with 19,264.
- The decline in COVID-19 hospital bed use in Maryland has stalled over the past several days, with the number actually increasing by 40 beds between Monday and Wednesday. As of Thursday, 455 hospital beds remain in use in the state to treat COVID-19 patients. Of those, 107 are ICU beds.
- In Northern Virginia, over the past week Arlington County has seen three of its four highest single-day counts since June. Neighboring Alexandria is also seeing elevated numbers, although they are below the current peak of the second wave in late July.
- Virginia’s average percent positivity is seeing a sustained over the past two weeks – dropping from 7.3% on August 8 to 6.5% as of Thursday.
August 19:
- As of Wednesday, 600 people have now died from COVID-19 in the District of Columbia.
- D.C. reported 29 new cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday – its lowest daily number of cases since July 4.
- The number of coronavirus cases reported each day in Maryland among people under 30 has fallen by more than 50% since July 31. However, the percentage of cases made up by the age cohort has continued to hold steady at around 40%.
- Maryland’s counties in the D.C. metro, Montgomery and Prince George’s, saw a brief jump in cases last week, but have since then resumed the declining trend they’ve both been on for most of August. As of Wednesday, Montgomery County was averaging 77 new cases a day and Prince George’s County was averaging 122 cases a day – both their lowest averages since mid-July.
- Virginia has been on a declining trend for six days now – much shorter than Maryland’s current 19-day fall, but one of the commonwealth’s longest sustained declines during the second wave of the virus.
- The percent positivity for coronavirus tests in Virginia has also fallen by .6% over the past two weeks, bringing it down to 6.7%. Virginia has been averaging about 15,000 tests a day over that period.
August 18:
- DC Health reports the percentage of new cases that can be traced to quarantined contacts has risen to 6.8% – still far short of the District’s goal of 60%, but also the highest rate to-date.
- There are now two wards – 4 and 5 – with more than 2,000 cases of the coronavirus apiece, and two more, 7 and 8, will soon join them.
- Maryland’s seven-day average for new coronavirus cases is now down 33% from where it was at the peak of its second wave on July 31. The state’s case trend has been heading downward throughout August.
- Montgomery and Prince George’s counties report they have tested nearly 20% of their populations (19.2% and 18.5%, respectively). Potentially thousands of Montgomery County residents have been asked to be retested, however, because of problems found with the AdvaGenix lab in Rockville.
- Virginia has been on a slight downward trend in new cases for the past five days. The commonwealth’s seven-day moving average has declined by about 15% over that period. However, it remains well in line with the overall average of Virginia’s second wave of coronavirus cases, and above nearly any point during the first wave.
- As of Tuesday, Virginia’s percent positivity rate was 6.8%. That’s the first time it’s been below 7% since late July.
August 17:
- As of Monday, DC Health was reporting the District’s coronavirus transmission rate – the number of new infections a single case can be expected to case – was above the goal of 1 again after 16 days below that mark. The data is on a delay, and so represents the city’s rate as of August 1.
- As of Sunday, more than 100,000 people in Maryland have now tested positive for the coronavirus. Of those, more than 3,500 have died.
- Maryland continues to see record low percent positivity rates for testing. As of Monday, the state was averaging a rate of 3.27%
- Hospital bed use by COVID-19 patients in the state continues to decline as well. AS of Monday, 435 beds remained in use to treat coronavirus patients – the lowest number in a month.
- After 20 days of averaging more than 1,000 new cases a day, as of Monday, Virginia’s seven-day moving average has been below 1,000 for four consecutive days. Not much below – the commonwealth was averaging 953 cases as of Monday – but it’s still movement in the right direction.
- Virginia’s percent positivity for coronavirus tests has remained around 7% for weeks – below the 10% goal, but well above neighbors D.C. (3.5%) and Maryland (3.27%).
- The number of COVID-19 ICU and ventilator patients in Virginia has continued to steadily grow. On Saturday, the latter number reached 167 – its highest point since June.
- D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser says the District will expand its number of contact tracers by 175, bringing the total number to 450.
- D.C. health officials say contact tracers will begin conducting home visits starting on August 20 for cases in which individuals were reached but did not complete an interview, or were unable to be reached. The home visits will allow investigators to assess the need for additional social services.
- Asymptomatic spread of the coronavirus has been a major source of infections in D.C., according to new data revealed by an analysis of the city’s contact tracing cases.
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: