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The Maryland Department of Health has reduced the frequency that the agency will publish statewide COVID data to its聽聽just once a week, after about three years of reporting COVID-related hospitalizations, deaths, and case rates on a daily basis. Now, the COVID dashboard for the state of Maryland will update on Tuesdays at 10 a.m.
The weekly COVID reports are part of the Department鈥檚 new聽聽for information on vaccines, treatments and testing, among other resources.
Maryland鈥檚 state reporting changes reflect 鈥渢he new phase of COVID-19 that we are in today,鈥� according to Health Secretary Laura Herrera Scott in written statement last week.
But since the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020, the disease has gone through waves of low cases that then surge, so how did state health officials determine now is the time to reduce the frequency that data is published to the public?
According to Maryland鈥檚 health community and state officials, there are a variety of factors at play 鈥� currently low community risk, new antiviral therapies, and the presence of at-home COVID testing 鈥� that justify weekly reports of statewide COVID data.
Meghan McClelland, chief operating officer for the Maryland Hospital Association, said the changes in statewide COVID-19 data reporting should not be of concern.
鈥淗ospitals track their COVID-19 patients, and patients overall, on a daily basis. They are currently seeing the lowest number of inpatients since the start of the pandemic in early 2020,鈥� McClelland said in a written statement to Maryland Matters.
That said, in January, the association reported that hospitals were almost at capacity due to 鈥渁nother steep uptick in Marylanders needing hospitalization for COVID,鈥澛�.
罢丑别听聽that while COVID cases and deaths have plummeted compared to recent years, 鈥渋t鈥檚 always possible for a new variant to emerge and start another wave.鈥�
Sen. Clarence Lam (D-Anne Arundel and Howard), a public health physician, warned that the reduced reporting may lead to people relaxing COVID precautions.
鈥淭he biggest concern may be the potential that this could signal that it is time to stop taking any precautions related to COVID,鈥� Lam said in an email. 鈥淓arlier in the pandemic, there was daily news reporting on our state鈥檚 COVID numbers, and it was a good reminder to the public of the need to take precautions. It is important that, as we move away from daily reporting, we remember that COVID is not 鈥榞one鈥� and that it continues to be important to take reasonable risk reduction steps.鈥�
But he also says the move to weekly reporting 鈥渟eems reasonable鈥� at this time.
鈥淥ur current COVID numbers are reflective of what researchers have been predicting for a while: 聽that COVID-19 is with us to stay and will become endemic like the flu, and we will likely seasonal rises in cases,鈥� Lam added. 鈥淗owever, it is important to recognize that, even though COVID is now a permanent part of our lives, it does not mean that everything is back to a pre-pandemic 鈥榥ormal.鈥欌��
Dr. Amesh A. Adalja, a senior scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and an adjunct assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said that at this point of the COVID pandemic, daily reports 鈥渄o not have much value.鈥�
That鈥檚 because the widespread use of at-home tests and the number of people who do not get tested for COVID means that daily case totals are 鈥渘ot reflective of the true burden of infection,鈥� he said in an email.
鈥淏ecause聽of the widespread immunity in the population from vaccines and prior infection, coupled to availability of antiviral therapy, Covid has become greatly more manageable than what it once was,鈥� he added.
鈥淐ovid is becoming more like other respiratory viruses because of the tools medicine and science have 鈥� provided,鈥� Adalja explained. 鈥淲eekly tracking is reasonable at this stage of the pandemic when there is no longer concern about the healthcare system鈥檚 capacity.鈥�
Del. Joseline Pe帽a-Melnyk (D-Anne Arundel and Prince George鈥檚) believes Maryland health officials will respond appropriately if the COVID pandemic were to worsen.
鈥淚 trust that if the situation were to change, the administration and leadership at the Department of Health will respond in the best way to help all residents of our state,鈥� she said in an email.
What鈥檚 in the new data?
As of Tuesday, the Department of Health reports that all of Maryland鈥檚 23 counties and the city of Baltimore have a 鈥渓ow鈥� COVID community risk. The COVID case rate for Maryland was 2.96 per 100,000 people as of Monday data.
There are 96 people currently hospitalized for COVID-19, with three pediatric cases. A dozen Maryland residents died from COVID-19 since last Tuesday, April 25.
It appears that information the state鈥檚 COVID vaccination rates will not be a part of the new weekly updates.
Previously, the Department of Health reported the percentage of Marylanders who had at least one COVID vaccine as well as the percentage of those who received two vaccines.
Federal health officials have adjusted COVID vaccination recommendations over the past several years. The CDC now recommends the initial vaccination regimen, two-doses for Pfizer and Moderna and one-dose for Johnson & Johnson, as well as an updated booster to better combat new variations of COVID-19, according to the CDC website.
Maryland Matters will continue publishing our聽, as the underlying information is available.
