COVID Rising In 20 States After Memorial Day Holiday Sparking Concerns Of Resurgence

Cases of COVID-19, caused by the novel coronavirus, are spiking in at least 20 states following the Memorial Day holiday and states’ first efforts to lift coronavirus-related lockdowns.

CNN reports that at least 22 states are seeing an uptick in virus cases, in some cases as much as a 46% rise in the number of diagnosed cases of COVID-19, though it’s not immediately clear whether those diagnosed cases required hospitalization or resulted in death.

In 20 other states, cases are on the decline (including New York, which is largely considered to be the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States), and in 8 additional states, cases are holding steady.

Many of the states now experiencing an uptick in coronavirus cases are smaller, with smaller populations, according to US News and World Report: “Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Nevada, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Washington.”

Florida is among the most concerning, with an uptick of around 46% in just the last week, according to CNN. The state has now been open for several weeks and is entering its “Phase 2,” with bars, restaurants, and most public places now open for business again.

There have now been around 112,000 deaths from the novel coronavirus in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins, which is keeping statistics on the virus. There have been around 2 million diagnosed cases of the virus in the U.S. and more than 7 million worldwide. Just under half a million people have died, globally, from COVID-19.

Experts, including Dr. Robert Redfield, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, worry that “coronavirus fatigue” is starting to weigh on Americans who have been out of work and, in many cases, forced to shelter in place since March. Many Americans are heading out into public again as states life coronavirus lockdown orders, and thousands upon thousands have taken to the streets in a series of mass anti-racism protests happening in most major cities.

Redfield told Congress that the protests, especially, are worrying, according to US News and World Report.

“We’re very concerned that our public health message isn’t resonating,” Redfield said in Congressional testimony last week. “We continue to try to figure out how to penetrate the message with different groups.”

So far, at least Minnesota has not experienced a spike in coronavirus diagnosis, two weeks after the first protests began, according to Newsweek. “Hennepin County, where Minneapolis is located, has also seen a continued decline in new cases over the past four weeks,” Newsweek reports.

Demonstrations, however, did not begin in earnest across the country until days later, until a video, showing George Floyd being arrested, with a police officer kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes as Floyd begged for his life, surfaced and went viral on social media.