COVID-19 cases likely higher than data indicate

While COVID-19 patient hospitalization rates are lower this year than in previous years, experts agree there are likely more infections than captured by current surveillance systems. The increasing use of rapid home tests, along with less public interest in testing, has made it difficult to get an accurate count of current cases nationwide. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention months ago stopped reporting aggregate COVID-19 counts, saying the data did not represent actual infections or transmission levels. Data from Biobot Analytics, a biotechnology firm that partners with the CDC, shows wastewater concentrations of coronavirus are similar to amounts at the beginning of the first winter surge in 2020. (CNN article, 9/1/23)