Last week there were three states in the red zone. Now there are seven.
Brown School of Public Health
For now at least, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is sticking to its guidance that only unvaccinated individuals need to wear masks to be safe, said the agency’s director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, at a press briefing yesterday.
But travelers should pack a face mask regardless of their vaccination status, as mask mandates are popping up around the country. The Biden administration is reportedly considering a revision to its mask guidance due to the rapidly spreading delta variant of the virus and new findings that breakthrough infections among vaccinated individuals are more common than previously thought.
MORE: Travel Alert: Florida Is The Epicenter Of The ‘Pandemic Of The Unvaccinated’
The delta variant is fueling a rise in the number of Covid-19 cases around the country, particularly in states where residents have been most resistant to getting vaccinated. Last week, there were three states colored red on risk-assessment map from the Brown School of Public Health. Now there are seven. Red means that a community is logging in more than 25 new daily cases per 100,000 people.
Here are the seven states where the rate of community spread of Covid-19 is the highest, according to data from the Brown School of Public Health.
1. Florida
Florida is the epicenter of this summer’s pandemic wave.
Brown School of Public Health
For the past few weeks, Florida has been the epicenter of the “pandemic of the unvaccinated.” The Sunshine State is currently recording an average of 60.6 new daily Covid-19 infections per 100,000 people, according to Brown University data. That’s a rise of 23% in one week.
Virtually every Florida county in the is now either red or orange (over 10 new daily cases per 100,000 people) on Brown’s risk-assessment map. Less than half of Floridians are fully vaccinated.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s executive order remains in place banning local governments from requiring face masks, but many local officials have expressed alarm. Earlier this month, the mayor of Orange County, Florida — where Orlando and Walt Disney World are located — issued a “strong recommendation” for wearing face masks in crowded indoor places regardless of their vaccination status. And officials in Miami-Dade County are now asking all residents to wear masks when around large groups of people.
The rise in Covid-19 cases in Florida is also food for thought for cruisers, since the state is home to the three largest cruise ports in the United States. Thanks to DeSantis’s much-hyped but unpopular law banning so-called vaccine passports, cruise lines are in the unenviable position of being prohibited from requiring passengers sailing from Florida to show proof of their vaccination status.
2. Louisiana
Louisiana is currently the no. 2 hot spot for Covid-19.
Brown School of Public Health
With an average of 47.3 new daily Covid-19 cases per day per 100,000 people, Louisiana has the second-highest rate of virus spread in the country. Only 36.4% of the state’s residents are fully vaccinated.
Two days ago, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell issued an indoor mask advisory as COVID-19 cases surge in the city. “I am recommending that everyone, regardless of vaccination status, should wear a mask indoors when with people who are not in their immediate household,” tweeted Cantrell.
3. Arkansas
Heading into the weekend, Arkansas is no. 3 for Covid spread.
Brown School of Public Health
Heading into the weekend, Arkansas is logging an average of 43 new Covid-19 cases every day per 100,000 people. Only 35.6% of Arkansans are fully vaccinated.
Republican leaders in Arkansas have banned government entities from requiring people to wear face masks. Yesterday a group of Democratic lawmakers in the state urged Governor Asa Hutchinson to repeal that ban. “Our frontline workers are re-living long, difficult hours of doing whatever it takes to care for Covid-stricken patients as hospitals are at or very nearly at capacity,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to the governor and Republican legislative leaders.
4. Missouri
Missouri ranks no. 4 in Covid spread this weekend.
Brown School of Public Health
The Show Me State is currently recording 36.6 new daily Covid-19 infections per 100,000 people. Only 40.5% of Missouri residents are fully vaccinated.
With Covid cases surging in the St. Louis area, the interim chief of the St. Louis region’s COVID task force is urging everyone to wear masks again, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. And in Kansas City, health officials are also calling for new mask mandates as the region nears a crisis point. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at the University of Kansas Health System, told the Kansas City Star, “We are past the tipping point. We are in trouble.”
5. Oklahoma
Oklahama is a patchwork of Covid-19 spread.
Brown School of Public Health
In Oklahoma, where less than 40% of the population is fully vaccinated, an average of 35.3 new Covid-19 cases are recorded every day per 100,000 people.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has called on Oklahomans to wear masks in public but rejected calls for a state mandate. Local mask mandates in the largest cities, Oklahoma City and Tulsa, ended last spring.
6. Nevada (tie)
In Nevada, the hot spot is the county where Las Vegas is located.
Brown School of Public Health
Only 43.6% of Nevadans are fully vaccinated. Overall, the Silver State is recording an average of 26.9 new daily cases per 100,000 people — but not every county is a Covid-19 hot spot.
The highest number of Covid-19 cases is in Clark County, where Las Vegas is located. The Clark County Commission voted this week in an emergency meeting to require face coverings for all employees working indoors. Last week, the county began recommending that all people wear masks in crowded, indoor public spaces.
6. Mississippi (tie)
Mississippi is tied with Nevada as the 6th hot spot of the weekend.
Brown School of Public Health
Mississippi ties Nevada at number 6, with an average of 29.6 new daily Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people. Only 34% of Mississippians are fully vaccinated.
The state’s hot spot is Hinds County, home of the state capital, Jackson. In that county, community spread is averaging 48.2 new cases per 100,000 people.
Originally Appeared On: https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/2021/07/23/travel-covid-hot-spots-weekend-delta-variant/