DC Back On Track For Phased Reopening Friday

WASHINGTON, DC — The D.C. Health Department reported a spike in its community spread metric over the weekend, which is one of the criteria affecting whether the District would enter a phased reopening this Friday.

Last Thursday, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the District was on track for a phased reopening on May 29, provided the city continued to meet the milestones laid out by D.C. Health.

"The data showed an increase outside of the expected ups and downs, so we had a reset day," Bowser said, during a Tuesday morning press briefing. "This morning, as we did yesterday, we were able to report on decreases again. And so, this morning we reported that we are now at 13 days of sustained decline, which means that if the trend holds we will be able to report 14 days of decline tomorrow."

D.C. Health is monitoring community spread to ensure the city is able to respond quickly to any increase of new cases once the phased reopening begins.

"I want to be very clear that we will continue to follow the science and begin our phased reopening, when the data suggests that we can," Bowser said. "The health and safety of D.C. residents is our priority."

In order to expand its testing capabilities, the District will be opening two new drive-thru and walk-up testing facilities on Monday, June 1. One of the news sites, which will be located at 241 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., will replace the testing site at United Medical Center. This new site was chosen because it was deemed a more accessible location, according to Bowser.

The second new testing facility, which will be open for walk-up testing, will be located at 5th Street Northwest, between F and G streets, near the National Building Museum.

"Tomorrow, we hope that the trends will continue and we will be able to provide next steps on a Phase One opening be effective on this Friday, May, 29," Bowser said.

D.C. Health confirmed no new deaths Tuesday due to COVID-19, the illness associated with the new coronavirus. The total number of coronavirus deaths in the District stands at 440.

D.C. Health also confirmed 109 new positive COVID-19 cases. The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the District stands at 8,334.

D.C. Health has confirmed 42,055 overall patients and 35,262 District residents have been tested for the coronavirus and 1,080 have been cleared from isolation. Contact tracing investigations are focused positive cases tied to health care workers and first responders, senior care facilities, correctional and detention centers, child care facilities and facilities serving homeless individuals.

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Positive 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

Globally, more than 5.5 million people have been infected by COVID-19, and over 346,000 people have died, Johns Hopkins University reported Tuesday morning. In the United States, more than 1.5 million people have been infected and over 98,000 people have died from COVID-19.

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• DC On Track To Re-Open Bowser Says; 8 New Coronavirus Deaths
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