COVID-19 is on the rise in a predicted 25 states nationwide following a new summer surge, according to an Aug. 18 report from Forbes based on the newest data from the CDC.
Currently, only five U.S. states are seeing declines in new COVID cases. Levels of SARS-COV-2 in wastewater are "very high" in 33 states including Texas, Florida and California, six more than reported the week before.
This year's summer surge could end up being the largest seen in the season since the virus first started circulating in 2020, according to the report.
Hospitalization and death rates still remain low compared to past summers. As of the week ending Aug. 10, 3.2 people were being hospitalized due to COVID-19 for every 100,000 people in a given area. That number is higher than the same week in 2023, but lower than the three seasons before.
Infections are growing or likely growing in California, Washington, Idaho, Arizona, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Illinois, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Vermont, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.
Cases are likely declining in Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana, Florida and New York. Other states were either staying stable with their rates of COVID infection or weren't estimated by the CDC.