Coronavirus: DC Health Adjusts Metric For Phase 3 Reopening

WASHINGTON, DC — D.C. Department of Health reported Wednesday it was adjusting one of the metrics it was using to determine when the District would enter phase three of the city's phased reopening.

"We have been very thoughtful in terms of the metrics we want to use and the best way to measure our progress," said Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt, director of D.C. Health in a Wednesday morning press briefing.

The District entered phase two on June 24, which lifted a number of restrictions on D.C. residents and businesses. At that time, D.C. Health announced that in would be monitoring several different metrics to see when the city was ready to move to phase three. These included community spread, hospital capacity, an increase in contact tracing, and a low test positivity rate.

"There were things that we set out for where we should be before we began our phased reopening, moving into phase two and phase three, in terms of our positivity rate, and those original goals were at 20 percent, 15 percent and 10 percent," Nesbitt said. "We have now learned a lot more about where you should have your test positivity rate, which is the percentage of people who have a positive test over the total number of people who have been tested on a given day."

D.C. Health now has more evidence that suggests that in order for a rebound — a sudden rise in the number of positive cases — not to occur, the test positivity percentage should be below 5, Nesbitt said.

For this reason, D.C. Health has lowered the positivity rate metric to a seven-day rolling average of 5 percent. The current positivity rate among District residents is 3.7 percent.

D.C Health reported one new death due to COVID-19 on Wednesday. The victim is described as a 62-year-old male. The total number of deaths in the District due to COVID-19 stands at 584.

D.C. Health also confirmed 54 new positive cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, which is less than the 87 reported on Tuesday. This brings the District's total number of positive cases to 11,999.

On Monday, D.C. Health released its first list of states deemed to be at high risk for transmitting the new coronavirus. People traveling from these 27 states to D.C. will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days when they arrive.

According to D.C. Health, 180,049 coronavirus tests have been administered in the District, 125,267 D.C. residents have been tested, and 9,723 have been cleared from isolation.

The District currently has 93 intensive care unit beds available out of 345 total intensive care unit beds. There are currently 164 in-use ventilators and 17 COVID-19-positive ICU patients.

Globally, more than 16.7 million people have been infected by COVID-19, and over 661,000 people have died, Johns Hopkins University reported Monday morning. In the United States, more than 4.3 million people have been infected and over 149,000 people have died from COVID-19.

COVID-19 Cases By Age And Gender

Total of Positive COVID-19 Cases By Ward

Total COVID-19 Deaths By Ward

Total of Positive COVID-19 Cases By Race

Total of Positive COVID-19 Deaths By Race

District residents should take the following actions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. An alcohol-based hand sanitizer can be used if soap and water are not available.
• Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

RELATED:

• DC Coronavirus Update: 1 New Death; 87 Additional Cases
• These Are The High-Risk States For DC's Self-Quarantine Order
• Coronavirus: DC Residents Must Self-Quarantine After Traveling
• DC Coronavirus Update: 1 New Death; 42 Additional Cases
• DC Mayor Mandates Masks For All District Residents In Public
• DC Coronavirus Update: No New Deaths; 102 Additional Cases