Dr. Ashish Jha: The COVID-19 ‘4th wave’ appears to be over
"We should be mostly heading down towards a new normal."
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The so-called “fourth wave” of coronavirus infections appears to be over, according to Dr. Ashish Jha.
Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, wrote on Twitter late Monday night he’s comfortable saying the nation is past its latest uptick in cases based on a few factors.
Compared to two weeks ago, infections are down in 36 states and test positivity has dropped in 30 states, he wrote. The national test positivity rate sits at 3.4 percent.
While data in some states is “concerning” — such as in Tennessee, Oregon, and Mississippi — the country, as a whole, seems to be on the other side of the wave, Jha said.
“Yes, we’ll see some some bumps and mini-surges in some states at times,” he wrote. “But overall, with 54% of adults with at least 1 dose and more vaccinations coming, we should be mostly heading down towards a new normal.”
On Monday, Massachusetts officials reported 2,321,661 people in the state were fully vaccinated and 3,361,789 people had received at least the first dose of either a Moderna or Pfizer vaccine.
So why am I comfortable we are on other side of 4th wave?
Compared with 2 weeks ago:
Infections down in 36 states
Test positivity down in 30 states
National test + at 3.4%
Yes, some states concerning (TN, OR, MS)
But nationally, other side of the wave.
Thank goodness
— Ashish K. Jha, MD, MPH (@ashishkjha) April 27, 2021
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