Arkansas
According to Newsweek, by the end of last month, the CDC reported that 16.3% of all COVID tests performed in the US, excluding at-home test results, came back positive, representing a 2% increase from the previous period.
Region 6, which contains Louisiana, New Mexico, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, came in at number one with the highest percentage of positive tests.
California
California’s strongest summer surge in COVID levels in years doesn’t seem to have an end in sight, and an uncommon mutation may be partially to blame, says the LA Times.
Of particular concern is the rise of a hyper-infectious subvariant called KP.3.1.1, which is so contagious that even those who have eluded infection throughout the pandemic are getting sick.
