Local infectious disease specialist gives an update on COVID-19

MEMPHIS, Tenn.–We have a COVID-19 update.

Infectious disease specialist Doctor Stephen Threlkeld says more than 1 million PCR tests have been administered and more than 592-thousand patients have been tested for covid-19 nationwide.

Threlkeld says hospitalizations are continuing to drop but death rates are rising.
He says one main factor in looking at the case number is the hospital curve, to see the impact of COVID-19 in the community. But, there’s also another factor to consider.

“It’s the case load in the community that really would be the primary driver of what we do in terms of behavior modification, how careful we are in the community,” said Doctor Threlkeld.

Doctor Threlkeld says the actual amount of virus in a community is harder to measure, so they use hospitalizations to get a better understanding of COVID’s impact.