Rural Covid-19 infection rate above metro for first time since March, as rural cases fall more slowly than metro cases

Newly reported coronavirus infections, in ranges by county, Aug. 9-15
Map by The Daily Yonder; click on the image to enlarge it or click here for the interactive version.

The rate of new coronavirus infections in rural counties fell by 5 percent from Aug. 9-15 while the metro rate fell by 12%. "The relative difference in the decline in infections means that the rural infection rate exceeded the metro rate for the first time since mid-March, according to a Daily Yonder analysis," Sarah Melotte reports. During that time period, 84% of rural counties were in the red zone, defined as those with 100 or more new infections per 100,000 residents in a seven-day period. That's down slightly from 87% the previous week. However, Melotte notes that the actual infection rate is almost certainly much higher because many people test and treat at home without reporting their infection.

Rural counties reported 562 Covid-related deaths from Aug. 9-15, down 10% from the previous week. "But deaths in metropolitan counties increased 3.3% last week and totaled 2,791," Melotte reports. "The rural death rate was 1.22 per 100,000 residents. That’s 23% higher than the metropolitan death rate of 0.99 per 100,000 residents. The rural death rate has exceeded the metropolitan rate every week except one in the last year." Click here for more charts, regional analysis, and county-level interactive maps from the Yonder.