CDC’s COVD-19 Data Tracker Now Includes Rural Trends!

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 Tracker is a tool for sharing maps, charts, and data about COVID-19. COVID-19 Tracker now reports trends in COVID-19 incidence and mortality rates by 2013 National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) Urban-Rural Classification Scheme for Counties. This scheme classifies all counties in the U.S. into one of six metropolitan categories (4 metropolitan, 1 micropolitan, 1 non-core). Users can focus on one or more of the urban-rural classes and compare them to the national-level rate. Users can also examine the urban-rural trends in incidence and mortality at the national-, state- or Health and Human Services region-level.

The CDC COVID-19 Tracker shows that the national level rates peaked in April, declined and plateaued for several weeks in May and June, and then began to rise again in late June. However, COVID-19 incidence rates among rural, micropolitan, and small metropolitan populations steadily increased since the beginning of the pandemic and surpassed the metropolitan rates in early August and now continues to rise at a faster pace.  Likewise, mortality rates in the more rural parts of the United States began low until mid-August when rates in the more rural areas began to surpass the rates in the more urban areas.

Access the Tracker at https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#pop-factors_newcases