The past two weeks alone have brought a drastic reduction in COVID cases: The average has dropped 37 percent over the past two weeks as of May 24, The New York Times reports. But some states are watching their averages surge by five percent or more. The latest spikes come as states across the country begin to fall in line with the CDC’s revised guidance that fully vaccinated people can now be outdoors and indoors without a face mask or social distancing. During an interview with The Washington Post on May 20, Anthony Fauci, MD, chief White House COVID adviser, said that we have to overcome one last hurdle to prevent future spikes in COVID cases. “If we get to the president’s goal—which I believe we will attain—of getting 70 percent of people getting at least one dose, adults that is, by July 4, there will be enough protection in the community that I really don’t foresee there being the risk of a surge,” Fauci predicted, “provided we continue to get people vaccinated at the rate we have now.” As of May 24, 61.5 percent of U.S. adults have received at least one shot, according to the CDC’s data. But there has been a plateau in the U.S.’s COVID vaccination rate in recent weeks. Other experts point out that vaccination rates may be holding steady due to one pervasive myth about the vaccine and COVID survivors. “My guess would be that the infection level among the unvaccinated population is probably higher because a lot of people probably aren’t getting the vaccine because they knew they were previously infected,” Scott Gottlieb, MD, former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner, told CNBC on May 21. The CDC says: “You should be vaccinated regardless of whether you already had COVID-19. That’s because experts do not yet know how long you are protected from getting sick again after recovering from COVID-19. Even if you have already recovered from COVID-19, it is possible—although rare—that you could be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 again.” Gottlieb added that overall COVID case numbers are likely trending downward as people are still relatively cautious when they go out in public and the return of warmer weather allows for more outdoor interaction. But he warned that the pandemic was unlikely to be declared “over” anytime soon. “I think we’re going to have a very quiet summer with respect to coronavirus spread and then have to contend with it again as we head into the winter,” he predicted. For now, it’s only a handful of states dealing with numbers moving in the wrong direction. Read on to see which five states are seeing COVID spikes of five percent or more, according to May 25 data from The Washington Post. RELATED: Dr. Fauci Says We’ll Be “Close to Back to Normal” by This Exact Date. New cases in the last seven days: 6 cases per 100,000 peopleae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb Percent increase in the last seven days: 5 percent New cases in the last seven days: 6 cases per 100,000 people Percent increase in the last seven days: 6 percent RELATED: America Will “Feel Close to Normal” by This Exact Date, COVID Expert Says. New cases in the last seven days: 11 cases per 100,000 people Percent increase in the last seven days: 13 percent New cases in the last seven days: 14 cases per 100,000 people Percent increase in the last seven days: 26 percent RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter. New cases in the last seven days: 8 cases per 100,000 people Percent increase in the last seven days: 28 percent RELATED: If You Got Moderna, This Is When You’ll Need a Booster, CEO Says.
