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What would be considered a good test positivity rate after the sudden surge of cases we saw from omicron? It stood at about 30 percent in mid-January.
Public health experts often look to the positivity rate, the rate of positive COVID-19 tests, as a reliable gauge for community transmission, with 5 percent cited as a key threshold.
“The higher the percent positive is, the more concerning it is. As a rule of thumb, however, one threshold for the percent positive being ‘too high’ is 5 percent,” according to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The World Health Organization, for example, recommended at the start of the pandemic that the percent positive remain below 5 percent for at least two weeks before governments consider reopening.
With mask restrictions lifting, should someone who hasn’t gotten COVID be worried? Are you going to keep wearing your mask?
Everyone has to judge their own risks. I’m super cautious. My mom is in her mid-80s. She’s fully vaccinated and boosted. So am I. But I don’t want her, or anyone, to catch it. It’s still spreading out there. Folks who study this say it’s a good idea to be careful, especially in crowded indoor spaces, and properly wear a good N95 mask.
And to keep an eye on case numbers, hospitalizations and other key numbers?
Absolutely. When transmission in your community is high, so is your risk. On Wednesday, the statewide positivity rate was dropping, but still almost 17 percent. When it drops to lower levels, say below the 5 percent level the experts watch, things are clearly safer.
Editor’s Note: A version of this article aired on the radio and has been adapted and edited for clarity.
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