As COVID Cases “Climb” Percentages, Demographics Don’t

As of Tuesday, July 28, the Benton Franklin Health District is reporting a total of 6429 COVID positive tests in the District.

One more death reported, bringing the total to 138.  Local information and media sources continue to focus solely on the daily case counts, but are not providing perspective with percentages and other data that has not really changed. In fact in one area, the percentages are as low as they have been in weeks.

•    Total cases: 6429.  out of a combined B-F Population of 307,000 that is 2.094 percent. (population source: Washington State office of Financial Management and other government sources, circa 2019).
•  The 138 deaths represent a 2.14 percent death rate, which has really not budged much week after week.
•  31,947 persons have been tested, of those the 6429 were positive (that is the total number of cases since Day 1).  That's a 20 percent infection rate, of 1 out of every 5 persons tested has COVID.  that means, four do not.
• -0- persons in our two counties under the age of 40 have died.
• In Benton County, 94 percent of fatalities were over the age of 60.  The other 6? over the age of 50.
• In Franklin County, 87 percent are over the age of 60. The rest? over 60.

And perhaps the most telling statistic of all, the percentage of "COVID" persons who are occupying a bed in the four areas hospitals (Prosser Memorial, Trios, Kadlec and Lourdes) has fallen to a multi- month's low 17 percent.  That's 55 out of 324 persons with COVID OR COVID-like symptoms. Week after week, it was fluctuating between 20-21 percent.

That can be compared to recent local media reports about "concerns" over allegedly increased hospital rates.

And we are not seeing a lot of focus on how many of the total cases are considered recovered.

Again, to manage and accurately assess this situation, and to prevent undue panic and fear among the public (as well as stress) ALL the facts and stats must be reviewed with enough frequency to remind people of what is really going on.

To see the BFHD site for yourself and look up these numbers, click on the button below.