Health and Healthcare

Bing Covid-19 Tracker 5/31/2020 (8:03 AM) Texas Figures Low

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: May 31, 2020 8:03 am

According to the Bing Covid-19 Tracker, global confirmed cases have reached 6,075,786. Active cases were 3,134,460, up 69,776 Active cases are 52% of the total of confirmed cases worldwide. Recovered cases were 2,571,797, a surge of 81,576. It is the second day that the growth in recovered cases has topped active cases.

Global fatal cases hit 369,529, higher by 5,070. Deaths are now 6.1% of the world’s confirmed case total. At the current rate, global deaths could reach 400,000 in less than two weeks.

Total confirmed cases in the U.S. hit 1,806,332, 30% of the world’s total

Active COVID-19 cases in America reached 1,310,671, a jump of 16,526. Recovered cases were 390,488, up 5,667. It is the second day that the growth in active cases topped recovered cases by a large margin.

Fatal cases in American reached 105,173, up 1,007, and are 29% of the world’s total. Fatal cases in the U.S. are 6% of American confirmed cases. In March, at least one model showed deaths would hit between 100,000 and 240,000 before early August. At the current rate of growth, deaths will reach near the middle of that range.

Texas Figures Continue To Lag Other Large States

Texas, the second-largest state in America by population, continues to have relatively few cases. With a population of 28,995,881, 8.7% of U.S. residents live there. The state, however, ranks seventh in confirmed cases at 62,338. Deaths in the state number 1,648.

Also notable is the low case and death figures in Harris County, the largest in the state and home to Houston, with a population at 4,698,619. Harris County has only 12,009 confirmed cases and 228 deaths. Contrast that with Wayne County, home to Detroit. Wayne County has 20,254 confirmed cases and 2,452 deaths. Wayne County has a population of 1,749,343.

Texas confirmed cases count is 52% of the total in Illinois, 39% of the case count in New Jersey, and 17% of the case count of New York.

There is no ready answer for the low numbers in Texas. There is no evidence that its lockdowns or case tracing have been better than in most other states. Southern states have been hit later than those in the Midwest and Northwest. That means there is a chance, albeit one which cannot be accurately forecasted, that cases and deaths in Texas will begin to rise more sharply.

Brazil Cases Near 500,000 As Russia Tops 400,000

After the United States, the two hardest-hit countries based on confirmed cases are Brazil and Russia. Just weeks ago, they lagged behind Spain, the UK, and Italy.

Confirmed cases in Brazil are 499,966. Deaths stand at 28,849. Deaths are low compared to confirmed cases measured against the U.S. and European figures.

Confirmed cases in Russia are 405,843. Deaths stand at 4,693, a figure which seems almost impossibly low.

There is skepticism about the case and death rates in both countries. Some argue that the governments of the two nations are purposefully undercounting figures. Others say that because of the vast sizes, measured by square miles, of both countries, cases are hard to count. Still, others say that testing in the two countries is the reason for low numbers.